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Vmiim ADVENTURE 



OVERLAND PARTY OF EMIGRANTS TO CALIFORNIA: 



il^R! 



SAVAGE TRIBES OF INDIANS!! 



IBKSKBAKt BAWDS ®ff m®IBSIime?8! 

WITH MARRIAGE, FUNERAL, AND OTHER INTERESTING CEREMONIES AND CUSTOMS OF 
INDIAN LIFE IN THE FAR WEST. 

COMPILED FROM THE JOURNAL OF MR. GEORGE ADAM, 

ONE OF THE ADVENTURERS, 

BY PROF. WM. BESCHKE. 



ST. LOUIS, MO.: 

PUBLISHED BY BARCLAY & CO. 

1850. 




THE 



DREADFUL SUFFERINGS 



THRILLING xiDVENTURES 



OVERLAND PARTY OF EMIGRAI^TS TO CiVLIPORNIA, 



TERRIBLE CONFLICTS 



SAVAGE TRIBES OF INDIANS!! 



MEXICAN BANDS OF ROBBERS!!! 

WITH MARRIAGE, FUNERAL, AND OTHER INTERESTING CEREMONIES AND CUSTOMS OF 
INDIAN LIFE IN THE FAR WEST. 

COMPILED FROM THE JOURNAL OF MR. GEORGE ADAM, 

ONE OF THE ADVENTUEEES, 

BY PROF. WM. BESCHKE. 



ST. LOUIS, MO.: 

PUBLISHED BY BARCLAY & CO. 

1850. 






Entered according to Act of Concjress, in the year IS.IO, by E. E. Barct.av, in t.he 
Cleik's Office of tj-ie District Court of tiie Eastern District of Pcniisylvaiiia. 









/ 
INTRODUCTION. 



It was in the month of September, 1849, when a company of young 
men, most of whom had just arrived from France, were sitting and dis- 
cussing in the "Exchange" saloon at New Orleans, where the daily 
j)apers gave a manifold echo of the striking news from the Gold Pte^ions 
in California. Wise and overwise people shook their heads in philoso- 
phical doubts of these golden stories; but our young heroes believed 
e\'<ery word of the "douotful tale," (as the head-shaking philosophers 
called the intelligence from California) and immediately resolved upon 
going there by land. They were not at all ignorant of the difficulties, 
fiUigues and dangers of such a journey ; but with them nothing appeared 
too extraordinary. Most of the Frenchmen had bravely fought through 
the great insurrection of June, 184^, in Paris, when their lives had 
been at stake for several days and nights, retreating only step by step, 
overpowered by the numerous armed underlings of General Cavaignac. 
At length, after losing every thing but their honour, they had safely 
reached Havre, and embarked for the great and only asylum of the 
unfortunate and oppressed, which is modestly called the United States. 
Such youngsters consider difficulties, fatigues, dangers, &c., as trifles : 
thus, the land expedition to California was resolved upon, as if it had 
been a pleasure-excursion. 

Carrel, a native of Paris, about thirty-six years old, was unanimously 
elected by his comrades for their first leader. He had travelled through 
several of the United States, and lived for some years at New Orleans, 
engaged in one of the first commercial houses there. His noble cha 
racter, developed by an excellent education; his enthusiasm for libertyj 
to which he would devote and sacrifice all his fortune, and his unim 
peachable life, entitled him to such a preference, notwithstanding hi^ 
modesty, with which he at first refused to accept the office of a first 
leader of the party. After thanking them for their confidence, he said : 

" My dear friends ! Now let us act with energy, prudence, and cou- 
rage, without losing one day in idleness. I wish you to appoint our 
noble friend, Adam, as my second; he not only equals me in every re- 
spect, but he knows the English as well as the French and German 
languages; and since we left Europe, he has begun to speak Spanish. 
Adam was also unanimously elected for the second leader of the com- 
pany, and Carrel gave him the important charge of a journalist, which 
Adam gladly undertook, as his little vanity was not a little flattered, to 
write down the future "Exploits of the Heroical Band of daring Ad- 
venturers, travelling to California across the great wilderness." And, 
Carrel continued, " such a journal may be very useful to others, who 
will follow us, and even to ourselves during our journey. Now, I 
propose to increase our small number by some hardy and select men 
of other nations, for they all may be of great service in the expedition. 
But, I repeat, they must be hardy and select men, as we are ourselves, 
having equal shares with us, in every thing, bad or good, loss or gain." 

(vii) 



( viii ) 

(Adopted.) *' I propose Adam to look out, ana judiciously inquire 
after such persons, who shall become our companions, within. one week 
from to-day." (Adopted.) "We will meet here every evening from, 
to-day. After a week, a general and final meeting will be held here, 
at which every one of us must be present." (Adopted.) 

It was done accordingly. Adam attended well to his business, and 
selected the following persons: two Americans, one Yankee (of Con- 
necticut) and one Kentuckian ; one Englishman, one Scotchman, one 
Irishman, three Germans, one Saxon, one Tyrolese, and one Swiss; 
two Italians, one Neapolitan, and one Venitian; one Spaniard, and 
one Mexican — in all, twelve new members of the party, so that, with 
an equal number of Frenchmen, there was a company of twenty-four 
stout and resolute adventurers, attending to the general and final meet- 
ing, at the above mentioned public saloon in New Orleans, on the first 
Monday of October, 1849. 

Adam introduced the new companions, telling every one's name and 
country, to Carrel, and the other older members, whose names he gave 
in return, adding that they all were genuine natives of his own dear 
France. We must mention here all these names, &c. : 

Carrel, Adam, Roger, Dorsal, Gaston, Larmory, Berti6, Avilon, 
Hector, Gilot, Pally, Manuel — all Frenchmen; Johns, of Connecticut, 
Downing, of Kentucky, Clarke, an Englishman, Cummings, a Scotch- 
man, Donalson, an Irishman, Arland, of Saxony, Maxle, of Tyrol, 
Urban, of Switzerland, Bolzano, of^'Naples, Tivocati, of Venice, Mar- 
tinez, a Spaniard, Sylvio, a Mexican. 

After they had heartily shaken hands all together, Carrel said with 
emotion : 

"Dear friends and comrades, we now form a union for a great pur- 
pose, in which we engage our lives and fortunes: let us faithfully swear, 
and stick to it as honourable men, standing all for one, and one for ail !" 
"One for all, and all for one!" they all answered, enthusiastically, lift- 
ing up their hands in affirmation of what their lips were swearing they 
would perform. It was a beawtiful scene to behold twenty-four fine 
young men, who swore allegiance to each other, voluntarily pledging 
their honour to devote their lives and their fortunes to the common 
w^elfare of all. 

When the storm of enthusiasm had somewhat subsided, Johns took 
the word, and said: 

" Let us now consider, my friends, how we will raise the necessary 
means or funds for our expedition. Shall every one of us go on his 
own hook? as we used to say in Connecticut, or," — He was interrupt- 
ed by Carrel, who answered : 

" In order to come to a conclusion with that business, I will propose 
a plan : let every one give according to his own will or means, more 
or less, depositing his share, unobserved, into a covered box, which, after 
being well shaken, is to be opened before the whole company, when 
the amount shall be counted and disposed of to our purposes." This 
plan was immediately adopted, each putting his share privately under 
the cover into the box. The money was counted, and found to amount, 
all together, to $4,995. 



( ix ) 

At last, Carrel brought forth a proposal, concerning the name of the 
company, which he wished to be called the " California Phalanx ;" which 
name was adopted by general acclamation, whereupon the meeting was 
adjourned till the next morning. 

When the members of the " California Phalanx" met again, on the 
following day, they were struck at the appearance of an Indian in their 
meeting-saloon. Carrel introduced him to the company under the Indian 
name of Waanataa, which means " foremost in battle :" this name he had 
inherited from his grandfather, a great chief of the Sioux Indians. He 
was a fine young man, about twenty-five years old, with a noble coun- 
tenance, his eyes expressive of sound intelhgence, while his manly figure 
bore the marks of great bodily strength. He underwent their inqui- 
sitive looks with a great deal of patience, or rather pride, as he was 
evidently aware that they admired him. After having somewhat sa- 
tisfied their curiosity by looking at him, they heard Carrel give the 
following explanation : 

" My friends, I have the pleasure of proposing to you the admittance 
as a new member of our Cahfornia Phalanx, this respectable youth, 
Waanataa, the noble grandson of a great chief of the Sioux Indians. 
He has been recommended to me by my banker, as faithful and honoura- 
ble; so I do not hesitate in taking the responsibility for whatever he may 
do as a member of our union. He is quite independent, and has volun- 
tarily resolved upon accompanying us to California ; speaks the English 
and many Indian languages perfectly well, so that there is no doubt 
he will be of the greatest value to us during our expedition, besides the 
interest arising from his agreeable personality." 

While this was spoken, Waanfltaa did not seem to understand one 
word of it : his features were quiet, serious, and unconcerned ; but when 
all surrounded him, calling his name, and shaking his hand, he grew 
friendFy, and gave an answer to every question he was asked. How- 
ever, he refused to comply with one request, made by Downing, to sound 
the Indian war whoop; earnestly declaring, that such an awful thing 
was not fit for being played with, adding, with a proud smile : " Per- 
haps you shall hear it once for good and all, in yonder wilderness!" 
All were pleased with, and struck at this sensible answer of the noble 
Indian youth. 

Now, let us pass over to the fragments and extracts from Adam's 
" Journal of the California Phalanx," with very few alterations or ad- 
ditions by the compiler, who only adds, in conclusion, that Adam thinks 
it is better, in writing plain English, to put the prepositions at, for, on, 
with, &.C., before, than to put them after the verbs; thus, he says: at 
what do you laugh ? for which does he look ? on what do they live ? 
with whom do we agree ? &c., instead of saying, as usually, what do 
you laugh at ? which does he look for? what do they live on? whom 
do we agree with ? who does agree with him ? &c. He also thinks 
it would be shorter, and often save half the trouble, to leave out many 
unnecessary letters in English words ; for instance, ^^your wife'^ could 
be written with half so many letters, " ur yf" saving trouble, room, 
ink and paper. W. B. 



FRAGMENTS AND EXTRACTS 



JOURNAL 



CALirOMIA PHALANX, 



We left New Orleans Oct. 4th, 1849, on board the steam-boat 
*' Martha Washington," and were glad to get out of that city at length ; 
but we must confess that no other place in the world could have 
afforded us so good an opportunity to compose and complete our Pha- 
lanx, with so valuable members. Twenty-five respectable and fine 
fellows, (myself, of course, included,) who set out for California, to 
make an overland journey of more than two thousand miles, through 
the wilderness I Well I We are the daring adventurers I 

Waanataa seems to be delighted, perhaps in anticipation of soon 
seeing again his native wilderness. Every one looks with pleasure 
and concern at the handsome fellow, whose national garments attract 
the looks of all the passengers on board, particularly those of the 
ladies, who smile, with evident jealousy, at the supposed vanity, or 
rather coquetry, of a man, to adorn himself with so many gay and 
motley colours. At dinner, the fair ones were struck at Waaiiutaa's 
gentlemanly demeanour and fine manners. Neither before nor after 
dinner did he — the " savage,^' — chew any tobacco, or drink any " fire- 
w^ater," — called brandy, gin, grog, whiskey, &c., as some of their 
*'well educated" beaux and husbands did,pestifying their own breath. 
Waanataa was not yet so far *' civilized" as these "gentlemen." 

Our French comrades were rather noisy at dinner, so that the 
American ladies and gentlemen seemed very little pleased with their 
company, for they continually whispered together and sneered, while 
they looked at the loud talkers. 

Toward evening, we had quite a pleasant amusement on the upper 
deck. Our three Germans, Arland, Maxle and Urban, gave a fine 
vocal and instrumental concert, which delighted all on board. Arland 
played the guitar, and sang, with Maxle, a German song, to which 
Urban blew the clarionet. 

Thus our first day on board the steam-boat was very agreeafelj 
spent, and so were the next few days, without any occurrence worth 
mentioning, except that our three concert-givers delighted us every 



( 12 ) 

clay with some new songs, or pieces, in consequence of which we Pha- 
langarians anticipated great musical pleasure during our journey to 
California. 

We arrived at St. Louis on the 19th October, where we were ad- 
vised to complete our provisions, and to purchase mules, &c., not at 
St. Louis, but at Fort Independence, where we could get thera at least 
as cheap as in the former place, saving the expenses of transport. So 
we went on and up the Missouri river to Independence. Here the 
coopany held a great council, whether they should travel exclusively 
on mules, or partly on mules and on wagons ; at length the opinion 
prevailed, that it was better on mules, and without any wagons, be- 
cause of the difhculties to cross rivers and mountains with the latter. 
Fifty mules were at once purchased, so that every member of the com- 
pany had one for riding, and one for carrying his baggage ; and after- 
wards, on consideration of possible accidents, in cases of losing any 
mules, ten more were added, and a mounted driver was appointed to 
watch thera. So our whole party consisted of twenty-six persons and 
sixty-two mules, when we started from Independence. 

Every one was sufficiently provided with many kinds of dry vic- 
tuals for several months, besides ten pounds of rice, which should not 
be touched but in the utmost necessity. Jldam had proposed this 
measure of prudence, stating that any person could live on two ounces 
of rice, boiled in water with a httle salt, every day for several months 
successively : thus, ten pounds of rice, (at sixteen ounces each) with 
a proportioned quantity of salt, would be sufficient to feed one person 
for eighty days.* 

We were provided with as many tents as our number required. 
Among our stock of things we had some articles for trading with 
the Indians — Mackinaw blankets, red cloth, vermilion, &c. — according 
to Waanataa's good advice. 

Our rule of travelling was, that we should always keep together as 
much as possible, riding along by two and two. Any loss of provisions, 
&c., was to be borne by all in common. Every one was armed with 
a rifle, a pair of pistols, six pounds of powder, twelve pounds of balls.^ 
a sword, a dagger, and a pocket-knife. 

We reached Fort Leavenworth on Wednesday, the 22d of Novem- 
ber, one year and two days after the departure of Lieutenant Beale's 
party for Bent's Fort and Santa Fe. Up to Leavenworth we might 
still consider ourselves within the Hraits of civilization, but beyond 
that place commenced the real wilderness of the Great West, inhabit- 
ed only by savages and wild animals. 

On Friday, the 24th of November, we started from Fort Leaven- 
worth, after we had added six oxen to our stock of provisions. 

Nothing of consequence happened on the first day of our journey 
towards Fort Laramie, except that Donalson, our Irish comrade, was 

♦This was proved during the siege of Gibraltar, in 1782, when General Elliot, 
the gallant commander of the small British garrison, lived for several months 
upon two ounces of rice daily, (and so did the people under his command,) 
standing against a besieging army of 30,000 Frenchmen and Spaniards, until 
the peace of the 20th of January, 1783. 



( 13 ) 

thrown from his mule, just before crossing a little creek, which the 
stubborn animal refused to pass, notwithstanding the repeated blows 
and pulls of its angry rider; the more he pulled jforward, the more it 
retreated backward, until, at last, Pat out of patience, exclaimed, 
" Faith ! I see what's to be done : every man will have his own way." 
He now took the mule by its tail and pulled backward, when, lo I the 
stubborn creature rushed forward, running through the water, while 
Donalson followed, holding its tail with one hand and the bridle with 
the other. 

"Donalson!" joked our Yankee upon him; "I calculate, before 
you're thrown down the next time we come to a stream, I'll give 
the refractory critter a good pull by its tail in your behalf ; or, will 
you turn about and sit backwards, taking the tail for the bridle ?" Pat 
was wise enough to join the general laugh, and promised to call for 
Johns whenever his "baste" wanted its tail pulled again. 

At noon we made a halt for one hour. About two hours after we 
had moved on again, Maxle and Urban, who rode in the rear of our 
cavalcade, suddenly shouted, "Indians ! " These, however, turned out 
merely to be a large flock of crows, busily engaged and flying about 
our last stopping-place. This false alarm gave us all an opportunity 
to show our still imperfectly exercised readiness in fighting all on a 
sudden ; but Johns took it for a good joke, in explaining the difl'erence 
between these crows and the " Crows," (a tribe of Indians,) near the 
Rocky Mountains, whose war-whoop, he supposed, to be somewhat 
louder than the unharmonious crowing of these feathered gentry, that 
had frightened Maxle and Urban's musical sensibility into such a blun- 
der. " I reckon, our able singer, with his talented companion on the 
clarionet," railed Johns, " wo'n't get out of their temper, or of their 
tune, at seeing those other ' Crows ' wielding tomahawks instead of 
■wings; but for this time they have both hit wrong notes, I pre- 
sume." 

Towards evening we discovered, not far from us westward, a small 
group of real Indians, without being, however, frightened at their ap- 
pearance, which was not at all warlike, as they were men and women 
in equal numbers. Some of the squaws carried their pappooses, bound 
fast upon boards, on their backs, the little ones' faces turned back- 
ward, which were the only visible parts of their bodies, their arms 
and feet being wrapped up and fastened upon the boards, large ribbons 
issuing from these and going around the squaws' foreheads, which they 
bend forward, while they carried their little oflsprings along. Neither 
men nor women were scared at our company, but approached us for 
the purpose of begging something from us. We gave the poor crea- 
tures all the copper money we had still in our possession, amounting 
to a little over one dollar, which we distributed among them in equal 
shares, while they nodded their humble thanks in receiving them, where- 
upon the oldest one of the men said, in plain English: " Gentlemen Ame- 
ricans, beware of the Sioux ! They are not all as good-looking as that 
fine warrior," pointing to Waanataa, "who is the white people's 
friend, because they treat him like a brother." Waanataa said nothing, 
and smiled ; but we thanked the poor Indian for his well-intentioned 



( 1^ ) 

advice, and being asked for the name of his tribe, he ansv?ered, with a 
kind of comical pride, " Cheyennes ! " 

When they had left us, Waanataa said to Carrel, whom he consi- 
dered as the representative of us all, " Brother Carrel, be not uneasy 
for what this old Indian said against my red brothers, the Sioux. None 
of you have ever been in our land, nor have any of you done wrong- 
to a Sioux. My life shall be forfeited, if any of the Sioux harm any 
of you, while I am with you ; and I will not go away from you tiii 
you bid me go or do me wrong, which I know you never will, without 
cause on my part." 

Carrel assured him, in the name of our whole union, that neither 
the least doubt on his account, nor any fear on that of his red brothers, 
the Sioux, prevailed among us. Waanataa replied: 

" That is right. My people have buried the hatchet, and smoked 
the calumet of peace with the whites; so, although they have 
wronged me, they will not wrong you, if you do not take up the 
hatchet out of the ground against them." 

"Brother Waanataa," said Carrel, "I know that your people 
have wronged you, and that you will never join them again ; but I 
don't know what they have done to harm you so much. To-morrow- 
is Sunday, and as w-e must have a day's rest, particularly for our ani- 
mals, I pray you to tell us why and how you have left your own peo- 
ple, preferring to live with the whites." 

After some consideration, which bespoke a certain reluctance, the 
Indian youth answered : 

"To-morrow, I will comply with your wish." 

We encamped in the evening near a small stream, bordered with 
underwood, that gave us fuel for a comfortable fire, as the nights were 
already a little cold for the season. As we had not slept much after 
midnio-ht, in consequence of the howling of wolves about our camp, 
we were glad that we could now rest all the day, listening to Wa- 
anataa's narrative, which follows here in his own words. 

" My tribe, you know, is that of the 'Dakotas ' or ' Sioux,' amount- 
ing to about thirty thousand men, women and children. Our land is 
fertile, and lies to" the north from here, between the rivers Missouri 
and St. Peter's, about the banks of the JBig Stone Lake and the Sioux 
river. My people are mostly what you call savages, and many of 
them drunkards, the influence of your civilization being forced upon 
them chiefly by fire-water, as I have already told you, on board our 
steamboat; for, when I then spoke of Indians in general, I meant the 
Sioux in particular, according to my own experience. Most of our men 
hunt, while their squaws dig the fields, plant corn, cut and carry 
wood, make moccasins, &c.; they also carry water and all the baggage 
without the assistance of the men, who only hunt, eat and drink, play 
or smoke. Generally, a woman is bought from her father, by a man, 
to become his wife, and he may turn her out of his lodge and drive 
her away, whenever he likes, to take another, while she must confess 
herself a widow, and her children orphans, although her husband, their 
father, is yet living. Thus, you perceive, the squaws of the Sioux, in 
general, are mere slaves, and live in a condition of the utmost misery." 



( 15 ) 

"Some thousands of our people have been induced to give up hunting, 
and to sell much of their portion of the Sioux country, at the mouth 
of the St. Peter's, to the United States' government, reserving to them- 
selves only so much of it as is necessary to plant corn and potatoes, 
upon which they partly live, paying — or intending to pay — for their 
other necessaries of life, with the money they ought to receive regu- 
larly, in the middle of each year, from the 'Agent' of the United 
States' government, according to the 'Treaty' with the latter, that 
such annual payment of the stipulated money, called 'Annuity,' should 
be made in the month of July, and not later, as then the planting sea- 
son is over; and this being the best month to leave their homes, (many 
of them travelling hundreds of miles,) and to return thither in time to 
harvest their corn and potatoes. For these men of our people have 
improved and become civilized. They have begun to work with the 
women, whom they now treat better than before, while they, the men, 
are themselves treated worse by their white ' brothers,' and suffer the 
greatest injustice by them, being cheated of their money and time. 

"Thus you see my friends, that such Indians as remain 'savages' 
and enemies of the whites, fare much better than those who become 
'civilized ' and make ' treaties' with them, which these never fulfil. 

"But these general grievances of the Indians have almost made me 
forget my own, which I will relate to you: so let me now continue: 

" I am proud of my grand-father, Waanataa, whose portrait I have 
seen at the house of the first War Counsellor, in Washington, think- 
ing the whites must respect him, or else they would not have his like- 
ness there. My father, although inferior to him, was also a gallant 
war-chief; but he died, fighting for his people and his country, when 
I was yet a mere boy ; whereupon the bloody tomahawk was buried, 
and the calumet of peace smoked by the Sioux with the whites. 

" To become a chief among the Sioux, one must have scalped a warrior 
of another tribe, and prove to have done so by producing the scalp ; 
or he must have killed and scalped a white man, in war with the Sioux. 
I was not naturally disposed to acquire either of these bloody trophies, 
and consequently I was despised as a coward by ray people, although 
I had never shown any fear in fighting or exposing my life, whenever 
we invaded the territory of the Pawnees, with whom we were con- 
stantly in warfare. 

" During one of these expeditions, I ventured myself rather near 
one of the Pawnee villages, many miles distant from our country, ex- 
pecting to find an opportunity for some exploit of bravery or skill, 
which might prove that I was not such a coward as my people sup- 
posed me to be, for none of them had ever gone alone so near, or ra- 
ther among the inimical Pawnees, exposing himself to be killed and 
scalped. 

"Seeing no warrior about the village, I judged that the main body of 
iis wiirriors was perhaps absent on an excursion; so I laid myself down 
in an ambush among the shrubbery, where I waited for some adventure. 
The great li<j;ht of the world had already been sinking half its way 
down, when I saw a licautiful Pawnee girl approaching me, as harm- 
lessly as an innocent lamb would approach a hidden wolf. I did not 



( 16 ) 

stir, but let her pass by, while I scarcely breathed for fear to frighten 
her; however, I involuntarily and suddenly sprang upon my feet, and 
she simultaneously turned her head ; but, instead of running away, she 
s*oo(l still and waited till I had reached her, when she smiled, and said: 
* Oh I although you be a Sioux, you will neither kill nor strike me; for, 
your eyes look mild, and tell me that your hands were never stained 
with human blood.' This confiding address disarmed me, and throwing 
away my weapons, to show my friendly intentions, I stammered in reply: 
*P'air maiden I your words are sweeter than honey, and your features 
vie with the brilliancy of the morning sun. If I were not a Sioux, I 
would be a Pawnee, and hunt for you alone. Tell me your name, fair 
maiden I' She looked down, and replied: 'Although you be a Sioux, 
I like to believe in your friendliness to me. Tell me first your name 1' 
'Waanataal' 'Oh I the grand-son of the far famed Great Chief? 
Well! Diora, the daughter of Petalesharoo,* whom they call the 
Bravest of the Braves, is fit for becoming the squaw of young 
Waanataa ; she will follow him to his country, plant corn for him and 
live in his lodge ; as an orphan, she is free to leave, her home, and 
no Pawnee has ever moved her heart.' While she concluded, I 
caught her in my arms, invoking the Great Spirit for our union, and 
answered in delight: 'Diora! my lodge is yours, and no other squaw 
shall ever plant corn for me, nor will 1 ever hunt for another but you.' 
We sat down and ate together our first common meal, a portion of my 
provisions taken along with me, looking and smiling at each other. 
Some hours elapsed before we thought of leaving, to get out of the 
Pawnee country ; and while the sun sank down, the moon rose, as if 
to favour our flight towards my home. 

*' We rode along swiftly, but in silence, till the bright morning 
star ascended from beyond the far mountains, where the great light of 
the day begins also its course, when I heard a distant noise, coming 
from ahead of us, and after a few moments the war-whoop from a 
score of Pawnee throats yelled in our ears. Diora startled and ex- 
claimed, ' Mackatana-Namakee ! Black-Thumler and his band, who 
are going to invade your territory! 'While I tried to sooth poor 
Diora, who now informed me in a few words that she had some 
time ago refused to become the squaw of Black-Thunder, or Macka- 
tana-Namakee, the leader of that body of warriors. The swiftness 
and strength of my noble horse could alone save us both from certain 
death, for Black-Thunder's vengeance would have been doubly satis- 

*•' Pfitalcsharoo was not a Chief, but a Brave, of the tribe of the Pawnees. 
( \ Brave is a warrior who has distinguished himself in battle, and is next in im- 
portance to a Chief.) He was the son of Letelesha, a famous Chief, commonly 
called the Knife Chief, or Old Knife. When Major Long and his Company 
travelled across the Continent, in 1819 and '20, they became acquainted with 
Petalesharoo. In the winter of 1821, Petalesharoo visited Washington, being 
one of a deputation from his Nation to the American Government, on a business 
I. miter. This Brave was of elegant form and countenance. In 1821, he was 
a'aout 25 years of aoe; but already before 21 years old. he w-as so distinguished 
hy hia abilities and prowess, that he was called the Bravest of the Braves.'' — 
Biotrraphy and History of the Indians of North America. (V. 116.) By Samuel 
D. Drake, Boston, 1831. 



( 17 ) 

*'.od, on account of rejected love and of national hatred, ber.ides the fp- 
rocity of a Pawnee warrior and leader; but I was resolved that he should 
neither capture my beloved bride nor dance around my scalp ; and we 
dashed along almost as fast as lightning, followed by Dlack-Thunder 
and his band, like a gloomy cloud chased by the winds, whose howl- 
ing was more than outdone by the dreadful war-whoop of our fierce 
pursuers. 

"When the foremost fired his rifle at us, of course in vain, I wielded 
and stopped my horse, aimed and fired, whereupon he fell dead from 
his horse, which ran away ; but, in the meantime, his next follower 
had reached us and fired, yet also luckily w'ithout effect ; wielding 
his tomahawk at his approach towards me, after I had dismounted, 
he cast a glance at Diora, who had remained sitting on horseback. 
A sudden furious yell escaped him, but I claimed his immediate 
attention with my tomahawk, which clanked against his in repeated 
strokes, till at length he fell down with a heavy groan, as 1 had 
broken his right shoulder by a blow, that disabled him to hold his 
weapon any longer. He now seemed to wait for being scalped and 
killed ; but although I was his fair vanquisher, declined taking the 
savage trophy, nor did I kill him ; to save Diora was my only 
desire, and I would have been ashamed to strike a conquered and 
fallen enemy, particularly in her presence, as he was unfortunate 
enough already in these humiliating circumstances, to be vanquished 
by one, who was his more successful rival in love. With one leap 1 
swung myself behind Diora on horseback, leaving poor Black-Thun- 
der half-dead on the ground, as his companions were already within 
rifla-shot, and I had no more time to spare without endangering our 
safety, as it would have been madness to stand alone against such a 
number of enemies. They all stopped when they reached their leader, 
and remained busily engaged about him, while every moment increased 
the distance between them and ourselves. He was, perhaps, induced 
by my generosity in sparing his life and in not scalping him, to forbid 
his warriors all further pursuit after us, or he remained unconscious, 
or he was dead, and they would not fight without him ; for at sunrise, 
after some hours' fast riding, we saw nothing more of them. 

"Diora w-as very talkative, both in riding and resting, and related to 
me some very interesting incidents of her father's and grand-father's 
lives, which I will try to relate here in her own words: 

'•'When my father was still very young, though he had already 
distinguished himself in battles, for which our people esteemed him 
like a chief, the Pawnees made w'ar to the Iteans, of whom a young 
squaw was captured by one of our warriors. 

'"He gave her up to the medicine-man, who doomed her to be 
burnt alive at the stake, in sacrifice to the Great Star. Letelesha, my 
f '.mous grand-father, whom they called with great respect the Knift- 
Chiff, had always opposed that old cruel custom of our people; but 
they listened more to the medicine-man, than to him, except in war- 
fare. So the unfortunate Itean squaw was bound to the stake around 
which our people assembled in large crowds, to see her die in the 
flames. Young Petalesharoo was sitting silent among the spectators 



( 18 ) 

till the flames had nearly reached tlieir intended victim, when, lo i he 
suddenly stood by her side, tore the binding ropes asunder, and carried 
her in his arms across the perplexed crowds to a place at some dis- 
tance, where he had before fastened two swift horses, one of which he 
charged with his rescued client, mounting upon the other, his favour- 
ite runner, and they disappeared before the astonished spectators. All 
this was done in a few moments. He brought her safe to the Itean 
country, and returned to his own, unconcerned at the consequences of 
his daring act, which no other Pawnee warrior would have done ; 
kut none durst censure him, not even the medicine-man, who was the 
most disappointed of all, and the virtuous Letelesha approved the 
good-nature of his noble son, of whom he was not a little proud. 

" ' Before getting married, my father was sent by our people to the 
Great Father at Washington, the big village of the whites, where 
their fine and young squawks tried every means to move his heart, and 
loved him very much, because he had rescued the young captive Itean 
squaw, telling him that it was very well done, w^ich he had not 
known before ; and they gave him a silver m.edal, with marks upon it, 
which were to mean such fine words, that I have learnt them by heart 
from my mother who repeated them so often to me : " Brother, accept 
this token of our esteem ; always wear it for our sakes, and when 
again you have the power to save a poor woman from death and tor- 
ture, think of this and of us, and fly to her relief and her resciie."^ 
Pie vfore that medal, attached to a string around his neck, upon his 
breast, and was very proud of being so highly esteemed by the white 
squaws, nor was my mother, nor am 1 the less proud of th^r high 
esteem for ray father, the ^Bravest of the Braves.' 

" 'When a young Pawnee has become a m.an, that is, after killing 
some buft'"aloes or wolves, and after stealing or capturing some horses 
from other tribes, or from the white folks, he is allowed to look at the 
young squaws, none of whom respects a man that never killed a buf- 
falo or a wolf, and never captured a horse, at least one, for a Pawnee 
without a horse is considered as poor as a Cheyenne, and he would 
rather be for his life-time without a squaw than without a horse. 
Now, when a lover wishes to win the heart of a young squaw, he puts 
his buffalo robe, with its furred side out, over his head, so that his face 
is almost concealed ; then he goes to her lodge, enters and sits down, 
without saying a word ; but she understands him very well, although 
she too says nothing, and after a little while he leaves her in silence. 
At the end of some days he returns to her lodge, and finding no seat 
prepared for him he must consider himself to be rejected ; but if there 
is a seat, he takes it, and soon after the young squaw sits down by his 
side, and begins to talk with him. Then the parents, relations or 
friends, with whom she lives, make a feast, ard those of the lover (k) 
the same, to which they invite each other, for discussing the matter 
together ; and after the feasts the lover brings a horse, or some horses, 

* It is a historical fact that the young ladies at Miss White's seminary, in 
Washington, gave Petalesharoo such a medal when he was there as a represen- 
tative of the PawneeSj in 1821. 



( 19 ) 

if he has more than one to give, which he presents to her parents, re- 
lations or friends, and takes her in exchange as his own squaw.' 

" ' I am very ghid," said I, " that I need not part with my good 
runner for having you, my fair Diora, as he serves me better so for the 
' same purpose, aUhough' — ' 

" ' Waanataa was too proud to purchase his Diora in exchange for 
a horse, but he fought for her hke a hero,' said she with a smile, that 
bespoke her pride and her happiness, which I shared with all my heart. 

" It was a fine sunny morning when we reached my native place, 
one of the villages in the Sioux country. The appearance of 
a Pawnee squaw there was so extraordinary an event, that in a 
few minutes after our arrival we were surrounded by a large 
crowd of men, women and children. Our Sioux squaws looked 
first with evident jealousy at my beautiful Diora ; however, they 
could not for a long time resist her charming and harmless innocence, 
when she friendlily entreated them to adopt her as one of their daugh- 
ters and sisters. My fellow-warriors, particularly the younger ones, 
did not show any marks of opposition, when I publicly declared her 
to be my wife ; but some of the more aged warriors, in accordance 
W'ith, and probably instigated by our old medicine-man, became vio- 
lently opposed to my union with a Pawnee squaw. They stuck 
to their old customs, which did not allow intermarriage between 
Sioux and Pawnees, and the present war between the two tribes was 
far from favouring an exception in our behalf. 

" My friendly endeavours to conciliate ray old, stubborn opponents 
ftiiled, and I was too isolated among my companions, on account of ray 
peaceable dispoaitien, and my antipathy to scaJping and killing our 
prisoners, or else I would have made a violent resistance to such a cruel 
oppression. I determined upon cunning to circumvent my oppressors, 
who had organized a real conspiracy to ruin me, which purported that I 
myself had conspired against my own people, having become a friend 
to their enemies, the Pawnees, to whom I would betray them whene- 
ver I coukL 

"It lay in my plan seemingly to yield and to submit as far as I could 
to whatever our people's common-council should decide concerning my 
marriage with Diora ; but indeed I was resolved rather to die with 
her than live without her. 

" One day I returned from hunting, and did not find her before our 
lodge, where she usually waited for my return, when I was gone out ; 
instead of her I found there an old warrior, who had always been my 
friend, and who informed me that she was a prisoner in the lodge of our 
medicine-man ; that it was surrounded by a body of our warriors, and 
that I could not see her till we both should undergo a public exami- 
nation to be held the next day before our common-council. He added 
that she had refused to answer any question, except in my presence 
and with my consent, declaring, ' Diora does not fear any of you, all 
and every one, for she is the grand-daughter of Letelesha, the daugh* 
ter of Petalesharoo and the wife of Waanataa,' This unexpected 
boldness on her part, who had always been so modest, had puzzled them 
all. They had been so awe-struck by hearing these celebrated names 



( 20 ) 

in such a connexion with hers and mine, that none said a word in re- 
[)lv to her, whose origin had been a secret to every one of them ; 
but my mind misgave me bad consequences from exposing that J^e- 
cret in the present circumstances. Unable to do any thing now [ov 
her rescue, (for what could I do but die in fighting alone ?) I suf- 
fered and waited with patience for the next morning, when all the 
warriors of our village assembled before the lodge of our medicine 
man, who presided over our common-council. 

" I knew that he was the instigator of all the mischief against me, 
for he had never been my friend, because I had always opposed our 
old bloody customs of scalping and killing our prisoners, which cus- 
toms he, as a blood-thirsty priest, would not give up, as they helped 
to preserve the declining power of priest-craft. As soon as the 
necessary silence prevailed around the assembly, he rose and said in 
a solemn and mysterious voice: ' Waanataa ! You are charged with 
conspiring against our people, the Sioux, by your connexion with 
our enemies, the Pawnees. Defend yourself, if you can, before these 
warriors, who are your natural judges.' 

'" Let first my accuser step forth !' cried I, with a resolute con- 
sciousness of my innocence, 'Let me confound him, whoever he 
may be, as a base liar !' 

'" Well,' said the haughty priest, 'I am your accuser! and the 
people know that the Great Spirit inspires me with the faculty ne- 
ver to err in what I think and say.' 

" ' Then you are a base liar !' cried I with a firm voice, ' for you 
do not think what you say now, nor do you believe that I am guilty, 
or else you would look straight-forward at me, and not cast your 
eves down, as you do now, in your consciousness of a culprit, while 
I can openly look into every one's face.' 

"All my young fellow-warriors began to express their approba- 
tion for me in a rather loud murmur of applause, while the old ones 
looked in silence at the confounded priest, who did r.ot utter one 
word in reply to what I had said against him. 

" Fathers and brothers,' continued 1, ' could you ever suppose 
thegrand-son of the great Waanataa to be a traitor to his people? No ! 
I have perhaps done more in service of my people than any other 
Sioux of my age. I have in a single fight vanquished Mackatana- 
Namakee !' 

"' Black-Thunder !' echoed a hundred of voices all around, while 
every one's eyes were cast upon me with admiration, for none prc- 
s;imed to doubt the truth of what I had said, except the lying priest, 
who observed : 

"' Prove that you have been the vanquisher of Black-Thunder I 
S!iow us the seal]) of Mackatana-Namakee.' 

"'No Sioux warrior will ever doubt the word of a Sioux war- 
rior; for never a Sioux warrior was a liar !' So saying I cast a firm 
look upon my false accuser, who durst not raise his eyes, while his 
features bespoke a suppressed rage at the general outburst of aj)- 
pliuse that followed. 

'• I now related my adventures with Diora and my fight with ths 
p'„wnees, adding : 



( 21 ) 

"* Fathers and brothers, yon nil know m}' anlipatiiy to scalpi/ii;; 
Mid killing a vanquished and fiilleii foe : I would not and could not 
scalp and kill Black-Thunder; but I have, either by my tomahawk or 
by my generosity, p'evented him from an invasion into oui- country, 
\vhich he intended with his party. Therefore, I presume to have 
well deserved of my people, and 1 claim the reward due to me, as to 
a gallant warrior. I claim the rank of a chief- among you.' 

"' Waanataa must become a chief !' cried all the younger warriors 
in a chorus. 'Waanataa has vanquished Black-Thunder! Mackata- 
na-Namakea fell by the tomahawk of Waanataa !' 

"Never shall I forget that moment of triumph over m}'^ deceitful, 
miserable enemy, who sat there as if he was in expeclalion to be 
scalped. Tlie great voting took place, and I was almost unanimous- 
ly declared to be a chief. 

" In the mean^vhile, the cunning priest had invented another plan 
to destroy my life's happiness in a manner that my rank as a chief 
must lose all its value for me. With an apparent resignation to the 
common will of our warriors, he acknowledged their privilege of 
electing me as one of their chiefs, because he could not do othei-- 
wise, observing that he expected 1 would follow his example in sub- 
mitting to every other decision of their and the people's majority, 
upon v/hich 1 answered affirmatively, not supposing thus to seal in 
advance with ni}'^ own lips the sentence of my noble Diora's death. 

"'Well,' said he, with an assumed dignity, ' I speak to all the 
Sioux, men, women and children. Listen to me ! I talk to you in 
the name of the Great Spirit. Is here any family who have not to 
mourn at least one slain by the Pawnees, our constant, irreconcilable 
foes? Is here no widow who lost her husband by a Pawnee ? Are 
here no orphans who lost their father by a Pawnee ? Is here no 
mother who lost her son by a Pawnee ? Is here no Sioux warrior 
who has to revenge the death of a father, or a son, or a brother, 
killed by a Pawnee ?' 

" This abominable appeal to natural grief and national vengeance, 
which the cunning impostor knew thus to excite, was interrupted 
and answered by a general, horrible outbreak of lamentations and 
iiroans, vvdiich gradually grew louder and louder, till they were raised 
to the highest pitch, and turned into the yells of the dreadful wai- 
whoop. i stood alone, unmoved and cool, in the terrible storm th;>.L 
surrounded me, because i thought of nothing else but the evideiit 
rascality of the artful priest, who continued — 

" ' There he stands ! unconcerned in your griefs and indifferent at 
your anger, only thinking of his love to a Pawnee squaw, the grand- 
daughter of Letelesha and the daughter of Petalesharoo, called the 
^ Bravest uf the B7'(ives,^ hecAUse he killed more Sioux than aiiv 
other Pawnee ever did. Listen to me ! I speak to you in the name 
of the Great Spirit. Let her be sacrificed in meniory of ail tht- 
slain Sioux, whose death was the triumph of the Pawnees ! Let her 
die at the stake !' 

"' Let her die ! let her die !' interrupted him a thousandfuld echo, 
that struck my heart with fear, which I had never felt before that 



( 22 ) 

moment in all my life; but my wonted courage soon returned to me, 
and 1 stru2;gled in my mind for some calmness, to address tlie as- 
sembly, when Diora, who had -heard every thing, broke through the 
door of the priest's lodge, her prison, followed by two watchers, who 
could not retain her any longer. They both retreated when tliey 
paw me. With one leap I was by her side, raised my tomahawk, 
and exclaiming, ' Who dares to strike my Diora ? W'ho will fight 
with Waanataa? Let him come out? VVho dares to raise his toma- 
hawk against a Sioux chief, the grand-son of the great Waanataa ?' 
None stirred, and all, even the oldest chiefs and warriors, remained 
silent, while I looked around with a calm fury that showed my reso- 
lution to fight and to die for my beloved wife; but she put her soft 
hand on my moutli, and said with the meekness of a daugiiter of the 
Great Spirit : ' No bloodshed, Waanataa ! let me die for you ! Diora 
docs not fear death !' And casting a steadfast look upon the cruel, 
homicide priest, she said, with a firm and loud voice, ' Prepare your 
stake ! 1 am the grand-daughter of Letalesha and the daughter of 
Petalesharoo, the " Bravest of the Braves:" I will show you that I 
deserve to be Waanataa's wife,, in dying for him without feai-. 

" All sat in silence, as if they vvere thunder-struck; but before any 
of them could answer, I raised her in my arms and carried her out of 
the assembly to our lodge, where my good runner stood ready for any 
case of emergency, and mounting with Diora, I left my country and 
my people, who, labouring under a tyrannical priestciaft, would h3\e 
probably sacrificed me and my beloved wife to a wicked impostor, if 
we had any longer exposed ourselves to their superstition and his ma- 
lignity. 

"Three days and nights I rode on with my poor Diora in our 
flight, only resting as often and long as it was necessary for us and 
our horses, avoiding to approach the country of the Pawnees, while 
we withdrew from that of the Sioux. We were now both without 
a home." 

"On the morning of the fourth day, we found, at length, a place 
fit for a longer stay. It was a natural cave in a rock, and we were 
delighted in discovering a little spring, not far below its entrance. 
When we had completed the arrangement of our little household, I 
prepared and left for hunting. 

"I was fortunate enough, as a skilful and experienced hunter, to 
provide us with abundance before the snow fell, in which we vvere 
almost buried for some months. In the following summer, Diora in- 
creased my hai)piness with her by t.he birth of a fine and hardy son, 
upon whom we bestowed our united afibction. We called him Diaro. 

'' But our solitude filled me at last with apprehension. What should 
become of my poor wife and child, if I vvere to die.-* Without me 
they must perish; for our provisions could not hold out longer than 
through the winter, if they were not occasionally supplied with some 
addition. My antipathy to any connexion with other people was 
therefore overcome by connubial and fatherly love: I resolved upon 
looking out for some distant neighi)our, with whom I might, per- 
haps, deal to mutual advantage. Diora had no objection to what I 



( 23 ) 

proposed, and promising to return before the next fall of the snow, 
{ started for the South, in order not to meet with any Sioux, whom 
I avoided more than the Pawnees, 

"After travelling along with my faithful horse for a time, daring 
which the moon changed and recovered its form — you call it a 
' month ' — I reached a large village of the Sac and Fox Indians, whom 
I supposed to be friendly to a single and peaceful Sioux, coming 
among tliem; but, unfortunately, I was greatly mistaken in this, as 
they had, or at least presumed to have, strong reasons to consider, 
and to treat every Sioux as an enemy. In the last war, which they 
waged under 'Black-Hawk,' and their second chief, 'Neopope,' against 
the whites, the latter was made a prisoner by a band of one hundred 
Sioux, who killed one hundred and twenty Sacs and Foxes in one 
fight. While the Winnebagoes betrayed, captured, and delivered 
iilack-Hawk to the whites, these Sioux did so with Neopope,* The 
Sacs and Foxes lost also their prophet, White-Cloud — Wabokieshiek 
— and eleven other chiefs, either betrayed or captured, and must 
submit to a 'treaty,' with 'annuities' — you understand — of twenty 
thousand dollars each for thirty years, with 'promises' — you know — 
of several additional provisions, according to which Hreaty' the Sacs 
and Foxes lost six millions of acres of their best land, abounding in 
lead-ore and others, which were thus acquired by the whites. 

"In consequence of these bloody and wicked acts, performed by 
a number of Sioux, the hatred of the Sacs and Foxes fell upon all the 
Sioux, and as I had the misfortune of being one of the latter, al- 
though I was a mere boy of nine years when the former took place, 
after my grandfather's and my father's deaths, I was doomed to abide 
for the wickedness of my people, who had compelled me to leave 
my home for the wilderness. 

"I had scarcely come within arrow-shot of the Sac and Fox vil- 
lage, when the war-whoop sounded, and, after a few moments, a 
crowd of warriors formed a large circle around me. An old Fox 
chief made a motion of silence to his companions, who immediately 
obeyed him, and he said with dignity: 

'"Sioux, how can you dare approach our village? Your brothers 
have killed more than a hundred of our brothers; your brothers have 
taken our chief, Neopope, and delivered him to the pale-faces; they 
have done like the treacherous Winnebagoes, who took and delivered 
our great chief, Black-Hawk, to our enemies, their friends. Although 
we have since buried the bloody tomahawk, and smoked the calumet 
of peace vvith our pale-faced enemies, we have not done so with our 
red ones, the Sioux, who are all traitors like the false Winnebagoes: 
therefore, Sioux, you shall die, in sacrifice to the Great Spirit, who 
sends you among us. I have spoken.' 

'"That is right, wise and brave warrior,' answered I, with a calm 
resignation; knowing that another reply to contradict him would 
have instantly caused my death. 'If you say so, 1 must die; but I 
know that the Sacs and Foxes are great warriors, and no cowards; 
I know that they are right in killing their enemies; I know that 

* This took place, according to history, in August, 1832. 



( 24 ) 

everj' Iraitor ou<i,ht to be killed like a rattle-snake; I know that the 
Winnebngoes and the Sioux have been traitors to you, and that thty 
arc wor^c than the rattle-snakes. Now, listen to me. I am nomoie 
a Sioux : my people have acted worse to me than they ever did to you, 
and I have left them, oever to join them a^jain. Adopt me as your 
brother. Give mean opportunity of proving to 3'ou my faithfulness. 
I have spoken.' 

"'Our common council can alone decide upon your fate,' replied 
the old cliief. ' I will neither vvarrant for your veracity, because yon 
are still a Sioux by appearance; nor will I doubt of it, because you 
look honest. In the mean while, till the decision of our common 
council, you are a prisoner among us, and must submit to the usual 
treatment of such.' 

•'I was pinioned, and led through the villagelike a culprit, surrounded 
by a body of warriors, and followed by a crowd of women and chil- 
dren, hooting after me, ' Sioux! Traitor! Kill him!' and tlirowin::: 
stones at me. In that hour of undeserved humiliation, I thought of 
your great prophet, Jesus Christ, whose sufl'erings I had learnt when 
I was a boy, from an old Huron, who lived and died in our village, 
to whom they had been related, in his childhood, by a pious Mord- 
vian Missionary, of Bethlehem, in Pennsylvania. 

" My prison was a large, miserable, decaying lodge, palisaded, and 
continually watched by three warriors, who never answerer! to my 
frequent inquiries for the decision of my fate. How can I give you 
an idea of my agony, when I thought of my dear wife and child ? 
What would become of them, if I could not return before the snow 
fell? and winter was coming nearer every day, while 1 had no other 
prospect of a rescue from my prison but a prisoner's death; for, if my 
jailers would not kill me, why did they keep me so long in excru- 
ciating suspense, which was much worse than death itself? 

"My pinions, the high palisades around my prison, and my con- 
stnnt three watohers, reminded me at every moment of the impossi- 
biiily of escape, and a lit of madness came over me, when I saw and 
felt the first fall of snow. I groaned with despair; and my silent 
watchers exchanged significant looks with each other, as if they un- 
derstood my fury, which they ascribed to a mere feeling of revenge 
at my long captivity; they showed me their tomahawks, as if the>e 
were the only means to stop my groans, and to check my furv. A 
hundred times, I had rejieatedly told my story, but without any suc- 
cess ; for none of my watclxcrs had once returned, so that I supposed, 
at length, all the Sacs and Foxes would come successively for watch- 
ing iv.e till my death, alter the last one cf them should have had his 
turn, to see and watch a captive, suffering Sioux, doomed to die as a 
victin) of their vengeance. 

" Winter passed and spring came, while no change took place ;n 
my terrible situation : my despair had already become permanent, 
and would have turned to indifference, if it had not been kept up by 
every thought of my poor Diora, and our dear child. 

"Six full moons had now fdled the cuj) of my sufferings to the 
brim. 1 liad a thousand times invoked, all in vain, the Great Spirit 



( 25 ) 

for my rescue; the scanty food which I received, had reduced my 
strength to that of a child, when once in the evening the old chief 
came into my prison and said : 'Sionx, to-morrow you shall appear 
before our people.' Without waiting for my answer, he left me 
again to my despair, as I could not guess whether or not my death 
was to be the topic of his people's conversation or amusement on 
the next day. 

'•Early in the morning the old chief appeared again, caused my 
pinions to be taken off, and bade me follow him, while mj"^ three 
watchers took me into their midst and formed a moving triangle 
around me, as we went along between a row of warriors, behind 
whom I perceived a crowd of men, women and children. This time 
they did neither hoot nor throw stones at me, but seemed concerned 
at my miserable appearance, as I looked like a skeleton and could 
hardly walk. 

" A wide semi-circle of warriors was opened at our approach, and 
closed after we had entered. The old chief took a seat in the mid- 
dle of the bow, between other chiefs, and showed me a seat among 
theirs, which was placed so that all the chiefs could see my face, 
when I sat upon it. A deep silence prevailed for a few moments, 
but soon tvvo men on the left wing of the semicircle began to beat 
upon a pair of drums, to the time of which those who formed the 
straight line of the semicircle commenced a council-dance. 

'•I therefore thought that I was not doomed to death, although no- 
thing else gave me the least idea of what I had to expect, for none of 
the features around me showed any feeling of good or evil, and 1 
knew how to exhibit the same indifference, which is natural with 
every Indian, particularly in difficult situations. 

" The council-dance lasted about one hour, during which I was at- 
tentively observed by some hundred eyes, while only the sounds of the 
drums interrupted the deep silence which prevailed and proved the 
solemnity of the council-dance. At its conclusion, the old chief said, 
' Sioux!' I rose and turned about, and he continued — 

" ' Sioux! Listen to me ! The Sacs and Foxes are no cowards ! 
None of us thirsts after your blood, because you have behaved like 
a man and not spoken a bad word against us during 3'our long capti- 
vit}' ; for if you had, we would have killed you in sacrifice to the 
Great Spirit, by whom you were led among us. You have well 
overcome your hard trial. Now you are free, to leave us or to join 
us. If you think we have wronged you, ask for any satisfaction, 
and you shall be satisfied. Will you fight? Challenge any of us, 
myself not excepted. Will you marry? Choose any one of our 
daughters, and you shall have her. Tell us what you want, and if 
we can we will grant it to you now. I have spoken.' 

"• Oh, fathers and brothers,' cried I, in a phrensy of despair and 
itnpatience, •' give me my arms and my horse ! Let me return to my 
poor wife and child whom I have left alone, far from here, in yonder 
wilderness ! I camehither as your friend and would have become3'our 
brother, but you have treated me as a foe and a traitor; you have 
kept me in prison so long that my poor wife and child must have 



( 26 ) 

perished in the mean time during the winter. Let me return to my 
wife and child, that I may also die near their corpses ! ' 

" My lamentations prodLiced those of all the squaws who could 
hear me, while tlie warriors, old and young, expre.'^sed their friend- 
ly sympathy by groans of pity, in which the old chief himself 
joined. Bv his order, m}' arms and horse were immediately hroughl. 
The latter was well fed, much better than myselt". Every kind of 
provisions, skins and blankets appeared in a few minutes, and about 
a dozen well-mounted warriors declared voluntarily to accompany 
me to my retreat in the wilderness and back to their village, if I 
would afterwards return with them. 

"After taking a friendly leave of all those around me, who stayed 
there, 1 started with my companions for the north. Seven times had 
the moon changed its light since ni)' separation from my beloved 
wife and child! On the evening of the 25th day after our depai- 
ture, I knew, by the appearance of the mountains in the east, that 
we were within one day's ride from my dear ones. I prevailed ujK)a 
my friendly companions to allow themselves a good night's rest — 
gave them the necessary information to follow and to find me again 
on the next day, and started for the last time with my faithful runner. 

"I rode on for tlie whole night without interruption, and with 
day-light I approached our cave in the rock. I saw nowhere around 
it any trace of a human being! Breathless I stood before the en- 
trance to the cavern, while I could distinctly hear my heart beat, lis- 
tening and looking for some signs of life, but I heard and saw no- 
thing. 

"'Diora,' whispered I vvith a fainting voice; no answer. 'My 
dear wife, Diora! ' said I a little louder, after taking some breath, not 
yet able to step forward ; still no answer. ' Diora ! ' cried I at 
length with despair. Listening again for some reply, when I heard 
in a faint whisper, ' Waanataal' In the same instant I stood near 
my poor Diora. 

"Oh ! never, never shall I think without a shudder of the dread- 
ful sight which my beloved wife and our dear child presented to my 
eyes! They were both lying on our couch of moss, both emaciated 
like skeletons, both stained with blood, which led me to the conclu- 
si-on that they had been wounded ; but, with horror, I soon disco- 
vered my mistake, when I saw the drained breast of the unhappy mo- 
ther and her suckling baby witb bis little mouth upon her left arm, 
of which she had opened the artery to let him drink her life's blood, 
thinking that his life might be preserved from starvation, as long as 
possible, after the latter should have destroyed her own, which was 
now already nearly extinct. 

" When Diora cast again for the first time her sunken eyes at me, 
her lovely features brightened with a smile, and she whispered, 
' My dear \V'aan3taa,' but I shut her mouth with a kiss, and said, ' My 
dear Diora! Let me first give you a drink, and then prepare some- 
thing to eat. I fetched some water in a leather cup from our little 
spring, poured it over a hand-full of corn-meal, stirred it up with 
half as much maple sugar, and presented the potion to my poor Di- 



( 27 ) 

ora, who, with the natural, self-dcnyinc; love of a tender mother, 
<j;ave her starving I)aby first to drink, before she thought of doing so 
iierself, while 1 knell and wept l)y tiieir side, unable to speak. 

My best endeavours wei-e all in vain ; I could not save the lives of 
my dear ones! At sun-set the sun and the star of my life were ex- 
tinguished by the Great Spirit. While my poor Diora embraced 
with her left hand our dying baby, she drew slowly her right hand 
from mine, and raising it with all lier last strength, pointing up with 
her finger to the Great Spirit, she once more smiled and sighed, 
' Waanataa !' 

" When my companions, after continuing their journey in the moon- 
shine, reached about mid-night my cave, now a vault of death, they 
Ibund me sitting and weeping besides the corpses of my Diora and 
our Diaro ! " 

'' My new friends had the manly delicacy not to interfere with 
my mourning : they left me alone in my grief all the night, observ- 
ing an awful silence while they lay encamped in the vicinity. Con- 
trary to the custom of the Sioux, who generally wrap a corpse in a 
blanket or a skin, and put it on the tops of four trees, where it de- 
cays in the open air, I buried the corpses of my dear ones in our 
cave, which thus became a real vault of death ; and in the extreme 
of my grief, that nothing of any value should remiain with me, after 
the loss of all that was dear to me, I killed my faithful runner by a 
shot of my rifle, and buried him too in the vault of death. My com- 
panions made a war-like funeral salute, by a three times' discharge 
of their rifles in honour and in memory of the deceased. I thanked 
them with all my heart fOr their kindness, and bade farewell, refus- 
ing once for all to return with them to their village, notwithstand- 
ing their friendly entreaties, which I answered by repeating my re- 
quest, to let me alone in my mourning. 

" After one change of the moon, the Great Spirit gave me again 
the necessary strength to revive, and to think of doing something, 
or to go somewhere. The idea of returning to my people fdled 
me with disgust. 1 would have refused, if they and all the other 
Indians had unanimously elected me for thair highest Great Chief. 

" As poor as a Cheyenne, but too proud for begging, I went down 
along the Missouri, living upon what game I could shoot with my 
rifle, till I reached St. Louis, where a noble-minded white merchant, 
to whom I related my misfortunes, procured me a free passage on 
board a steamboat down the Mississippi to New Orleans, where I 
would embark for Vera Cruz, to take service in the United States' 
Army, during their war with Mexico. But my patron at St. Louis 
had recommended me to a friend of his in New Orleans, a French 
hanker, whose good advice prevailed upon me not to become a sol- 
dier, or 'a privileged homicide,' as he said — while his kindness pro- 
vided me with the means of a decent living, for which he desired 
me sometimes to relate my adventures to liim and his -family or 
friends. At length he recommended me to you, my brothers I 

" But now let me entreat you, my friends, never to mention, if yon 
can help it, the names of Diora and Diaio in my presence. This is 



( 28 ) 

Uie only favour I ask you, for having related my misfortunes to 
you." 

We all shook hands with the noble Indian, our brother, in grati- 
Uule and sympathy for him, promising to comply with his last vvis-h. 
It was now midnight, and every one of us retired to his couch upon 
the o;round. 

p]ai-ly on the morning of Monday, our caravan moved on towards 
Fort Laramie, along the great Oregon route, on the south-side of the 
Hatte or Nebraska river, which we expected soon to reach, accord- 
ing to our maps. The weather was as fine as we might wish it for 
an Indian summer. 

On the next Saturday, about noon, while we were dining, one of our 
scouts — Roger — cried, suddenly, pointing to the North, "There are 
Indians!" In a few moments, we were all mounted, ready to fight, 
while Ned held and led our animals, fastened to each other by the 
common halter, and escorted by Gaston, Bertie and Gilot, their safe- 
guards during the eventful fight. Waanataa looked out for a moment 
and said, "They are Sioux, but none of my acquaintances; stay here, 
and be silent ! I will ride thither and tell them that we are their 
friends." He talked with them for about a quarter of an hour, where- 
upon he returned in their company. They did not show the least mjs 
trust, but looked quite unembarrassed when he presented them to us. 
He said, they invited us to visit their neighbouring village, as he had 
warranted for our peaceful and friendly sentiments towards all the 
Sioux. Their dress vras somewhat different from, and inferior to, 
that of Waanataa. After some consultation, we accepted their invi- 
tation, and followed them, who rode ahead with Waanataa. 

After two hours' riding, we reached a pretty large village, v\'hich 
was quite a novelty for us, in this wilderness. About one hundred 
lodges were standing, upon a vast plain, almost equally distant from 
each other, but rather irregularly ranged. In the middle of the place 
we saw a lodge better in appearance and larger than the others, and 
Waanataa told us that it belonged to the chief. We encamped at a 
little distance from the village, while Waanataa and his two com 
panions rode straight into it. Soon after, he returned with the chief, 
a venerable old warrior, who look Carrel by his hand, with a serious 
friendliness, and made a short speech to us, which Waanataa, now our 
interpreter, translated thus: 

"My father,* and my brethren! listen to me! Keewagoushkum, 
the chief of this village, bids you welcome. He is told by your 
Sioux brother, Waanataa, that you are friends to the Sioux, and will 
not harm any of them; that you have come hither to shake hands 
with us, and to smoke the calumet with us; therefore, none of my 
people shall harm any of you, for the Sioux are friends to the white 
people. If you want something of what belongs to us, speak ! and 
you shall have it! We are your friends, I have spoken !" 

* This epithet — " Father," — seemed rather funny to us, and we were all 
obliged to smile a little, as the old man could, by his age have been himself the 
father of Carrel or any other of us; but Waanataa told us that the name " father"' 
is given by the Indians to every man whom they will honour. 



( 29 ) 

Carrel replied: 

" Keewagoushkum, our father, is a wise chief, and a great warrior. 
We are glad to take his hand, and to smoke the calumet with him^ 
among his people. We wish him to accept from his white friends a 
blanket, a knife and a pound of tobacco, for his calumet; but, in re- 
turn, we wish to make some trade with his red children. 

The old man received our presents with becoming dignity and 
evident pleasure, whereupon he ordered his people to bring forward 
whatever they had to spare, and to sell; — provisions, horses, dogs, 
&c., for which we gave the adequate value in Mackinaw blankets, 
pieces of red cloth, pinches of vermilion, &c. But we made the 
best acquisition in purchasing three lodges of buffalo skins, for which 
we paid three fine rifles, three pounds of balls, and three pounds of 
powder. These transactions took us three days, during which we 
became quite familiar with our red brethren and sisters. 

With one of the latter, our brother Gaston fell in love, in conse- 
quence of which, we all, as well in fun as in earnest, anticipated some in- 
teresting romance. She was, indeed, a beautiful girl, by the name of 
Ahibah, and if she had been dressed like a white " lady," every man, 
young or old, would have declared her to be a " belle." Gaston was 
so much taken by her charms, t^t he freely resolved upon marrying 
her, — either in the Sioux manner, by a segular purchase, or in ths 
French manner, by a regular wedding. 

Ahibah was not in the least contrary to Gaston's wi-shes, but she 
belonged still to her father, who considered her ^ a good piece of 
merchandise, with which he would not part lor a small price. 

When Gaston seriously declared that he would rath»r stay among 
the Sioux than leave Ahibah behind. Carrel took the responsibility 
for him, who was his favourite, to offer, through the medium of 
Waanataa, our constant interpreter, — a fine rifle, two pounds of balls, 
and one pound of powder to Ahibah's father, for his daughter. The 
offer was too tempting: he could not refuse to accept it. But, taking 
advantage of the passionate lover's anxiety, the old fellovv asked the 
addition of a new Mackinaw blanket, and — of Gaston's tobacco pipe! 
with which he, Ahibah's father, fell in love, probably because it was 
silver-mounted. Gaston did not hesitate one moment to sacrifice 
his silver-mounted tobacco pipe to his love, and generously added a 
pound of tobacco into the bargain! These merry marriage negotia- 
tions produced a great deal of amusement and laughter among our 
company, particularly on account of the old Indian's earnestness, in 
managing and bringing them to a close, while innocent Ahibah was 
full of pride, because Gaston liked her better than his silver-mounted 
tobacco pipe ! 

The good bargain which Ahibah's father had struck witli Gaston 
in selling his daughter to her lover, made quite a sensation among 
all the fathers, who had marriageable daughters, in the Sioux village. 
The consequence was, that soon a great number of Sioux fathers and 
daughters made their appearance among us, to our greatest amaze- 
ment and amusement. 

Among the young squaws, exhibited in this match-market, there was 



( 30 ) 

one whose person claimed the attention of every man sensible to fe 
male charms, although hers were of a peculiar character. She was by 
far not as handsome as Ahibah, but her features were lively, and bore 
the marks of a keen intelligence, which is often more attractive than 
mere beauty, at least for a man of good sense. She was Ahibah's 
p;uticular friend, by the name of Yonka, and her father told Waa- 
nataa that he would not have thought of bringing her along without 
her positive declaration to accompany her friend Ahibah, for whom 
.she had a sisterly attachment. Waanataa related to Yonka's father 
his misfortunes, and how he had become a widower, adding, 

"The love of my life is buried in the vault of death, or else 1 
sh.ould give you all I possess in exchange for Yonk.?, if she would 
o^o with me as my squaw ; but if you will let her go with us to ac- 
company Aliibah, I promise to you, upon my honour as a Sioux 
cliief, to be her brother and protector, till her marriage or death." 

In the mean time, Yonka's father had been surrounded by the 
other Sioux fathers and daughters, to whom he communicated 
every thing of the last transaction; and their lively discussions of the 
matter sliowed the great interest they took in it; for, while the fa- 
fiiers were seriously engaged in conversation around him, their 
(laughters formed around Ahibah and Yonka a dense crowd of chat- 
ling squaws, not unlike a flock of chattering geese. 

'I'hen it was resolved upon, that Yonka should always be protected 
and respected, by all and every one, as the " Sister of the Phalavx^' 
like the romantic and musical '•'■ Daughter of the Regivicnt.^' '-That 
is right/' said our good Waanataa: "I see that all my brothers are 
gentlemen." He was appointed to fetch Yonka's father, who imme- 
diately appeared, followed by the whole crowd of fathers and daugh- 
ters, looking and listening, whereupon Waanataa, according to our 
instruction and in our names, made to him the following speech: 

'• Father, we are so much pleased with your confidence in giving 
bs your daughter, that we wish 3-ou to accept these presents as marks 
of our esteem and friendship. We all promise to you, (hat we will 
v.ycv treat her well and protect her as our sister, that she m.ay never 
) epent of having left you and her native place. V\ e are your friends.'- 

The old man replied : 

"My friends, I thank you for what you have done and said to mc 
— you are as good as you are wise and generous. I am glad that you 
will always protect and respect my Yonka as your sister, for she is 
good and has never excited her father's anger, who is more proud of 
lier than he would be of three scalps. I am your friend." 

Carrel's proposition to celebrate, as well as possible, Gaston's wed- 
ding with Ahibah, was unanimously agreed to and executed on the 
following day. Provisions of every kind were brought in abun- 
dance to our camp, where we partook of an ample repast, looked on 
by a large number of Sioux warriors and other men, women and 
chilt!ren. Yonka was, of course, Ahibah's brides-maid, while Car- 
rel himself claimed the honour of being Gaston's groom's man, or 
* Garcon-d'Honneur,' although we had no priest and no altar, instead 
of which we formed with all our rifles put upon each other, a trian- 



( 31 ) 

gular tabic, overhung with a new Mackinaw blanket, around which 
Gaston, Ahibah, Waanataa, Yonka, her father and Carrel sat down, 
while the others helped themselves as well as they could without any 
tables. After dinner, Arland, Urban and Maxle, gave in honour of 
the young couple a concert, of which Maxle enhanced the value by 
'yodling' better than he ever did, whereby he became the favour- 
ite of all the young Sioux squaws present, while their fathers' ad- 
miration was more for Arland's guitar, and Urban's clarionet, in [)ar- 
ticular the latter, as being the loudest of the two instruments. Afier 
they had played some lively pieces, they made a pause to rest a lit- 
tle ; in the meantime a consultation took place between the male In- 
dians, who talked violently togetlier for awhile; whereupon two of 
them went among the squaws and picked out two of the youngest 
and finest, whom they led before the musicians, while they spoke to 
Waanataa, who smiled, and said to Arland and Urban : "These men 
offer to you their two daughters, in exchange for your musical instru- 
ments ! " 

Our whole company burst out in a general and violent roar of 
laughter, which lasted for some minutes, while the two old and new 
lovers of music, to which they would sacrifice their daughters, stood 
there in expectation, as serious as if the}- would begin a war-dance. 
The two innocent victims of music, harmless or thoughtless, nodded 
and smiled significantl}^ to Ahibah and Yonka, casting at the same 
time alternately some lively and friendly glances at Arland and Ur- 
ban, who could scarcely hold their instruments for laughing, when 
Waanataa asked them : 

" What shall I answer for you, brothers?" 

Carrel was the first who recovered, and could sa)^, "Brothers, do 
strike the bargain ! it's a capital joke. I will save your instrument? 
at all events." But Johns added, " Arland, 1 guess you'd better 
loosen a little the strings of your guitar, that they do not sound.'" 
And Arland did so accordingly, with a few turns of his fingers un- 
observed by the Indians. "Urban," continued Johns, "take the 
reed out from the mouth-piece of your clarionet;" but Urban re- 
plied, "Never mind the reed, for I am sure that even with the reed 
in it none of these red fellows can produce more than a goose-cry." 
"Well ! go on," cried Arland and Urban at once, giving their in- 
struments to the delighted Sioux, who immediately tried to handle 
and use them, in imitation of what they had seen done before, while 
the merry young musicians took unhesitatingly each one of the smi- 
ling Indian beauties, who gave themselves up without any resistance 
to their supposed intended husbands, allovving themselves to be em- 
braced and kissed by theoi to mutual satisfaction. 

In the mean time the new owners of the musical instruments v/ere 
struck with amazement, and greatly disappointed; for, while one at- 
tempted in vain vvith puffed cheeks to blow musically the clarionet, 
which made only two or three shrill and broken sounds similar to the 
cries of a goose, the other moved his fingers over the strings of the 
guitar vvith no audible success at all. They were puzzled, looked 
at each other, and spoke a few words together, whereupon they ex- 



( 32 ) 

changed the instruments, and once more tried their supposed musi 
cal skill, but again without any better effect. All the company, ex- 
cept VVaanataa and the four Indian ' Belles,' laboured under a general 
fit of laughter, observing the lamentable figures of the two unhappy 
and disappointed fathers, who now saw their commercial-musical 
speculation turn to nothing, after they had given up their lovely 
goods to the purchasers. 

At length Carrel, apprehending some disagreeable consequences 
from the fatliers' despair, and perhaps revenge, asked Arland and 
Urban, in good earnest, whether they would keep and take along the 
young squaws as their wives? for, if they would keep, he proposed 
to the conipnny another sacrifice of two more Mackinaw blankets in 
behalf of their wishes, which was granted accordingly; whereupon 
the two musicians declared their resolutions in the affirmative, and 
at the same time promised to compensate in a future time to the 
company the value of whatever should be added to the blankets, if 
necessary or thought proper, in justice to the satisfaction of their 
brides' fathers.] 

" We cannot spare any more rifles," said Carrel, " nor any more 
powder and lead, but I think we may double the value in giving two 
blankets for either Mrs. Arland and Mrs. Urban, as Madame Gaston 
ha.s alone cost much more than the value of six blankets. 

The disappointed fathers and would-be musicians were standing in 
the mean time discussing together, casting now and then their anxious 
looks at the living and at the wooden objects of their discussion, 
when Waanataa acquainted them with what the company had resolved 
on their account, whereupon their hitherto sad and serious countenances 
brightened up, like those of two thirsty drunkards at the appear- 
ance of a bottle filled with their favourite liquor. Thej' went di- 
rectly to Carrel, who gave them the four blankets without ceremony 
and to their evident satisfaction, which they expressed by their un- 
interrupted smiles in receiving these goods', and in siiaking hands, 
not only with Carrel and Waanataa, but also with Arland and Ur- 
ban, whose young wives they did not consider now any longer as 
their own daughters. ■'■*?• 

" But, my friends," said Carrel to the company, " it's the highest 
time for us to leave this Sioux village, or else all its marriageable 
young squaws will become agreeable members of our company; — 
therefore, let — what are the Indian names of Mrs. Arland and Mrs. 
Urban? — let them be the last ones who join us." 

"Their Indian names," replied Waanataa, " are too hard and too 
long for you — Leachistanana and Otakawandah." 

" Well, ma}^ we not abbreviate them ? What do you say, Ar- 
land and Urban ? How would you be pleased with Lea and Ota ?" 
inquired Carrel. Arland and Urban replied that they had no objec- 
tions to these abbreviations, if their wives themselves had none. 
Waanataa asked the latter for their opinions, whereupon Leachista- 
nana and Otakawandah declared themselves to be satisfied with the 
names of Lea and Ota. 

We were interrupted by the appearance of the old chief, Keevs'a- 



{ 33 ) 

goushkum, who came to inform us, in his own person, of the death 
•oi his son and intended successor, Aloainatonee, inviting us at the 
same time to attend his funeral. Waanataa answered for us in the 
proper manner, usual on such an occasion, and told us the funeral 
ishouid take place on the following day. Our curiosity vvas not a 
lillic excited to witness the funeral of Moamatonee ; but as he had 
not 3'et been a real commanding chief, we were rather disappointed 
in our expectation of a great solemnity; for this funeral vvas a very 
modest and simple ceremony, without the least pomp ; however, its 
novelty for us made it interesting enough, to be recorded here. 

The corpse was brought to its resting-place without a coffin, only 
wrapped up in buffalo-skins, on a single hand-barrow or hearse, 
borne by four warriors and followed by old Keewagoushkum with 
Moamatonee's widow, her two children and two dogs. It almost 
seemed to us that the deceased had not been very popular among his 
people, as only very few of them attended his funeral, and this 
was perhaps the reasoiv that Keewagoushkum retired immediately af- 
ter the arrival of the little procession on the funeral ground, a place 
with four trees, to the tops of which the four bearers of the corpse 
climbed up, where they fastened the latter, with its skins around it. 
There it was to decay in the open air. 

Our brother artist, Manuel, made a sketch at the funeral, while 
the corpse was put upon the tops of the four trees, and during the 
;;peech he added lo the figures of those who attended, (with the ex- 
ception of ourselves,) and illustrated our journal with that fine draw- 
in"". 

On the next day, early in the morning, we took a friendly leave 
of Keewagoushkum and his people, who crowded our camp and foi- 
bwed us, many of them, for some miles; but Yonka's good father 
accompanied us all the day, and stayed with us till the next morning, 
when he bade us and his daughter a last farewell. 

We had purchased in the Sioux village six Indian ponies, besides 
the two given by Yonka's father: she used one for riding, and the 
other for carrying her baggage; three other ponies were mounted by 
Ahibah, Lea and Ota, while the three others carried their baggage. 
The five remaining oxen were, like the mules, constantly kept in 
good spirits by our Indian dogs, of which we had also purchased si^. 

Th.us our caravan proceeded for several days, without any adven- 
tures, except such as generally occur to travellers in the wilderness, 
one of which, however, is worth recording. 

We were on a Friday at noon resting and dining in a large ravine, 
which we had chosen for being a little protected from the cold wind, 
that was blowing, while our animals were allowed to pasture above 
and around us at pleasure, watched by Ned and the dogs, the newly- 
married couples merrily basking in the honey-moon, played and 
jested with each other; while our lovely " Daughter of the Pha- 
lanx " was engaged in serious conversation with Waanataa ; vvhen 
Maxle, taking a lonely walk at a little distance around our camp, 
suddenly startled us all with a plaintive yell, quite different from his 
usual 'yodle,' when singing. Waanataa ran instantly toward him. 



( 34 ) 

and was the first by his side, followed by the four squaws, as their 
Jndian swiftness f:;ave tliem great advantage over our comparative 
slowness, for when we arrived on the spot, Waanataa had already 
killed and cut to pieces with his tomahawk a big rattlesnake, which 
had bitten the right foot of poor Maxle. We saw at the same time 
the squaws running about, and stooping now and then, but \'onka 
s-oon returned alone with a handful of green leaves, and then she rM\ 
to the water-bucket,whither she was immediately followed by Ahi- 
bah,Lea and 'Ota, who brought altogetheronly as many leaves as YonUa 
had brought alone; then she tore all the leaves to pieces and threw 
them into the empty bucket, with which she ran to the spring ner.r 
by, and fdled it half with fresh water; whereupon she ran with the 
bucket and its contents to Maxle and Waanataa, around whom we 
were standing as anxious spectators. Maxle sat upon the ground 
and looked somewhat uneasy, while Waanataa was quietly engaged 
in applying upon the rattle-snake's bite the inner parts of the sliced 
pieces of its body. The iirst slice was taken- from the wound after 
a few minutes, and had turned black from the effect of the venom ; 
then Waanataa applied a second and a third slice upon the wound, 
and so on, till all the slices were thus used up, and the last one looked 
only a lillle black, which proved that all the venom was extracted 
from the wound, when Waanataa declared Maxle out of danger ; but 
Yonka anxiously insisted that Maxle should still put his wounded 
foot into the fresh water, which had been saturated with the substance 
of the torn leaves, gathered by her and the other squaws ; for, as 
quick as they had seen him bitten, they had run and looked about 
for these leaves, to save him from dying of the rattle-snake's bite, while 
Waanataa killed it and cut it to pieces for the same purpose. He 
told us that either of these remedies was sufficient to counteract the 
fatal effect of the deadly venom, and that the green leaf, whose vir- 
tues thus communicated to the fresh water made it a saving-bath for 
every person bitten by a rattle-snake, was generally and properly 
called the "rattle-snake's master" — a novelty for us all. 

Every one perceived that Yonka's good-natured anxiety for Maxle 
had made worse another wound, of which he was suffering since he 
had seen her for the first time. This induced Johns to observe with 
h^ usual shrewdness, " I guess, brother Maxle, you would rather 
have Yonka to heal your heart's wound, which ails you more than 
the rattle-snake's bite, I calculate. Well, you must conquer the red 
girl's love by 'yodling,' which she understands as well as any body 
else, I presume," Maxle blushed, and we laughed, while Yonka 
expressed her admiration for Waanataa's heroism, by fastening th.e 
rattle-snake's head to his other trophy, the mouth-end of a wolf's 
skin, which he wore around his shoulder. He smiled at her doing 
so, and said son)ething, which none of us understood, and to Gaston's 
inquiry he answered by shaking his head in earnest silence. None 
of us durst joke with him about such matters, on account of his misfor- 
tunes with Diora, which had inspired us with a delicate respect for 
his feelings 

Tlie weather was exceedingly fine, and the air generally very 



( 35 ) 

clear, but the nights were rather cool and clamp from the falling dew, 
which however bestowed upon us a valuable advantage, in conse- 
quence of Waanataa's advice. As we vrere sometimes without good 
water for drinking, we spread out at night our buffalo-robes — pur- 
chased in the Sioux village — and they contained regularly every 
morning about one pint of fresh water eacl), a relish of great value 
in the absence of spring-water, although its taste was a little stale, 
like that of rain-water. 

Our five remaining oxen were successively killed and eaten up, 
before v^;e reached the Platte or Nebraska river, although we got 
some additional supplies in occasionally shooting game that hap- 
pened to come within our reach while we travelled along. 

On the morning of the last day of November, while we ate our 
breakfast, our scouts descried "Indians!" These we saw at a great 
distance on a hill, and through our telescope we counted their num- 
ber to be some dozens, of the Mandan tribe, as which Waanataa im- 
mediately recognised them. He observed by their motions that they 
had discovered us already, and scarcely had he told us so when a 
cloud of smoke rose up from the hill, where they had made a large 
fire, to inform their distant friends of our approach, as that of ene- 
mies. They correspond with each other telegraphically in this man- 
ner, as they had not yet any means of distant communication. 

•'Friends, be not uneasy," said Waanataa. "Theyare not mounted, 
and are only Mandans, whose tribe has been visited, some years ago, 
by a dreadful scourge, the small-pox, and reduced from sixteen hun- 
dred souls to so small a number, that these two or three dozens are 
perhaps the last remaining of all. They have joined the Riccarees, 
who roam about in these regions, between tiie Missouri and the 
Black Mountains there in the north-west. Prepare for a fight, al- 
though I am sure we shall have no fight with them, as they must see 
by the presence ot our squaws that we do not come to attack them ; 
but they will probably levy a tax upon us for passing through this 
country, which does not even belong to them, properly, as it is that 
of the Riccarees. You will merely have a good opportunity of see- 
ing a Mandan war-dance, without any danger. Let them dance to 
their heart's content. Then I will speak to them, while you may, 
apparently, prepare for a fight, whereupon you shall see how glad 
they are if you will let them go in peace, or give them some pre- 
sents." 

During this communication of Waanataa, our Indian beauties were 
standing around, and looking through the telescope, which Carrel 
and Gaston had arranged for them, to satisfy their natural curiosit)'. 
Every one was startled when she looked through it and perceived the 
fierce Mandans quite near, — a wonder they could not comprehend. 
Jn the mean time, we prepared to meet the Mandans in due warlike 
array, without interrupting our march for longer than a quarter of 
an hour — necessary to secure our ladies and our animals from danger, 
as mucli as possible. We proceeded towards the Mandans for about 
atiDiher hour, during which they also moved on towards us, when 
Waanataa bade us halt, and rode forward alone to meet them. He 



( 36 ) 

talked about ten minutes, and then returned with an answ-er whicF 
confirmed what he had said before. VVMien they were come near 
enougl) to see every one of us ready to fight, and even our squaws 
anrieci with pistols, they stopped, and immediately began a ferocious 
war-dance, whicii they accompanied with the hideous war-whoop^ 
that made our marrow bones shake, but without frightening us, in 
consequence of VVaanataa's persuasion of this being only a mocker3% 

We sat ready on our mules, with our fingers on the triggers of our 
double-barrelled rifles, and upon Carrel's word "Fire!" all these 
fierce and savage dancers would perhaps have rolled in the dust, from 
which their heavy trends had kicked up a gray cloud, that should 
have been outdone by a denser cloud of gunpowder smoke from our 
fire-arms. After their dance, they stnred at us, quite amazed and 
puzzled at our cool indifi'crence — which was indeed so relying upon 
Waanafaa's word, that Manuel had even dismounted and made a 
sketch of the war-dance while it was going on, with the drawing of 
which he favoured our journal. Whereupon Waanataa, according to 
Carrel's instructions, made the following speech: 

"MandansI you are great fools! You think that my white 
brothers fear you because you dance before them and let your war- 
whoop sound into their ears. You are mistaken. They know that 
you are poor wretches, and the last ones of your tribe, protected 
only by the Riccarces. If my white brothers will, they can shoot 
you all down at once, like mad dogs ! Therefore, beware ! Do not 
excite their anger! Look at them I If you behave peaceably, they 
are your friends; for they have come with peaceful intentions, only 
to go through the Indian countr}' beyond the mountains, where they 
will join their white brothers. But you see they are ready to fight, 
as brave men and warriors of their great Father, who has more war- 
riors than all tlie Indians together; — and he can avenge any wrong 
done to his children, if an}- of you, or other fools dare to attack them. 
Mind what I say ! Now go and tell that to j^our friends, the Ric- 
carees ! If they will peaceably trade with their white friends, they 
may have blankets and other such goods, but no arms, in exchange 
for victuals and animals' feed. I have spoken !" 

Waanataa's natural eloquence had the desired effect, and these 
ferocious war-dancers grew suddenly as tnme as beaten dogs. They 
thi'ew away their arms, and slowly approached our company, among 
whom the}' appeared as humble beggars. We gave them some trifles 
which we could s])are, for nothing, and bade them go ahead and in- 
form the Riccarees of our good intentions in passing through their 
territory. But we never saw any of the latter Indians, who had 
probably been frightened by the report of the Mandans on our ac- 
count, and retired out of our way; for we found only the traces of a 
pretty large village, some days after our meeting with the Mandans. 

About the middle of IJecember, we reached, at length, the Ne- 
braska or Platte river, along whose southern shore we would travel 
towards Fort Laramie. According to the map, we were now just in 
the latitude of New York. 

Now we continued our marcli upwards, along the southern shore 



( 37 ) 

of the Platte River, whose dirty-yellow water was not very agree- 
able for drinking, although good enough for cooking and washing, 
which business was done by our excellent squaws, to our great com- 
fort. Gaston's fancy or idea, to fall in love with Ahibah, and the 
example he set to his iniitators, Arland and Urban, in getting 
married, was now, even better than at first, approved; although from 
rather selfish motives on our part. But we were also pleased with 
the company of the young ladies on account of their manifold intel- 
lectual charms, and the natural common sense which they occa- 
sionally exhibited, in judging of things they had never known before. 
Adam had, a long time ago, laboured under the desire to hear an 
Indian mother's mourning song, at the death or the corpse of her 
baby, which song, he had been told, was quite peculiar and interest- 
ing for Europeans and their descendants. He took tl)is opportunity^ 
to let Waanataa request the squaws to favour us with such a song, 
but Ahibah, Lea and Ota positively refused to comply with the re- 
quest, giving, quite naturally and freely, as a prevalent motive for 
their refusal, that any newly married wife, or even any young and 
yet single squaw would become, in advance, her own infanticide by 
singing such a mourning song. " Well," said Maxle, wiih a slirewd- 
ness which was quite unnatural in him, and certainly inconsistent 
with the feelings of his heart, "As Yonka will never marry any man, 
let her comply with Adam's reqtiest; there can be no harm for her 
in doing so." 

Waanataa interpreted, with a passive indifference, every word to 
Yonka, who could not help casting a look of displeasure at Maxle; 
whereupon the other squaws exchanged some lively words with each 
other, and (hen they spoke all together, at the same time, to her, 
evidently for the purpose of persuading her not to comply with 
Adam's request, and Maxle's pretension, these names being men- 
tioned several times in their discussion, which Waanataa would not 
interpret to us. But he said a few words to Yonka, who listened to 
liim with a serious countenance and downcast eyes, that grew dim 
with tears of disappointed love. While we were all sitting around 
in a painful silence, for some minutes, she seemed to struggle, but at 
length to agree with herself again, although she was unable to check 
her tears, that gave a peculiar charm to the song, which she sang in 
broken sentcnres, immediately translated by Waanataa. 

<•' Great Spirit ! listen to my plaintive cry ! — I mourn and weep 
for my baby. — Look ! how many tears drop from my eyes ! — I am a 
poor mother, with a broken heart ! — For thou hast taken my darling 
away from my motherly breast ! — My baby's life began through the 
tender breath of him who loves me ! — The cry of our darling was 
for me sweeter than the gay voice of a meadow-lark in the spring! 
Nature is now for me a valley of death all around !" 

Yonka sang the last sentence particularly with a tremulous voice, 
that moved all our hearts, and filled them with a fiiendly sympathv 
for her own grief, and Waanataa looked more serious than ever, 
probably thinking of Diora and Uiaro, whose memory was to him a 
double cause of grief. Every one of us, perhaps Maxle excepted, 



( 38 ) 

seemed to inquire, " Why does not Waanataa love and marry Yon 
ka?" — I3iit none of us durst utter this question aloud, even in Waa 
nataa's absence, fearing; to meddle in any way w^ith that matter. 

Waanataa stood in silence for a few minutes, as if listening to some 
unexpected noise or sound. At length he said, in English, not un- 
derstood by the squaws, " Brothers! we shall soon have a thunder- 
storm." The squaws rose almost simultaneously, and at once pointed 
to the south-west, saying some words to him, who nodded affirm- 
atively, and continued speaking to us. " They also hear and see 
the thunder-storm coming from yonder mountains. Let us prepare 
and pitch our lodges in time!" None of us could hear or see any 
thing like the foreboding of a thunder-storm, or the latter itself, nor 
even of a mere rain, as the sun shone brightly, and the sky was cloud- 
less, at least for our eyes, although not for those of our Indian brother 
and sisters. We only felt a fresh breeze blowing from the moun- 
tains in the south-west, and we would scarcely believe what Waa- 
nataa foretold us, and in consequence of which our squaws made 
haste in pitching our lodges, while he told Ned to secure our ani- 
mals, as fast as possible. 

After some minutes, during which we communicated to each other 
our doubts of Waanataa's and the .squaws' correctness in weather- 
prophecy, for this time, at least, we heard already a slight roar of 
distant thunder, and saw a curtain of dense clouds, like black smoke, 
rise from beyond the mountains; while the wind grew stronger and 
our animals more uneasy, at every moment. We had no time to 
discuss now, and were not disposed to rail or to laugh at our present 
situation. But Waanatia inspired us all with good humour, by his 
unexpected remark to .fohns: ''Brother! now you may soon catch 
a thunder-bolt, and use it as a playing b;dl!" Johns looked sulky, 
and decliiied answering, although we laughed a little at his expense. 
It was about noon, but the sky being so iieavily covered with dense 
and black clouds, we were soon surrounded by an almost nightly 
darkness, and scarcely able to distinguish any object beyond live 
hundred yards from our camp. If we had now had the misfortune 
to be attacked by a band of inimical Indians, our chance for a victory 
would have been very poor. But, happily, there was no such dan- 
ger for us at present; having sublime nature alone to contend with, 
or rather, to inake a compromise, by creeping under our tents and 
lodges, which we had safely fastened on the ground. Carrel, Down- 
ing and Maxle volunteered to watch our camp during the thunder- 
storm, while Ned remained faithful with our animals. All the other 
members of our company took refuge under cover, except Waanataa, 
who had only seen Yonka safely lodged, and now joined our volun- 
teers, ofTering to relieve Maxle, who declined, however, to retire. 
Donalson crept likewise out from under one of the tents, cxclainiing, 
" My mother's only son must not hide himself, like a little chicken, 
under the wings of a clucking hen. Where's Johns?" The otiier 
volunteers pointed at one of the Iodides, whither Donalson imme- 
diately went, opening it, and crying, " Halloo! brother Johns! Come 
out and catch thunder-bolts! They'll soon be here, and jun)p about 



( 39 ) 

like grashoppers." "Oh! let me alone!" replied Johns, " I don't 
feel well now!" "Ha! ha!" laughed Donalson, unmercifully rail- 
ing at him, "Johns has already caught the thunder-fever, before the 
arrival of the thunder-storm, just as many a young recruit catches 
the cannon-fever before a battle. Poor fellow !" 

The merry volunteers' peal of laughter was instantly followed by 
a tremendous peal of thunder, simultaneous with a terrible flash of 
lightning, by which our animals were so frightened that they all 
jumped and danced about, as those Mandan mock-warriors lately 
did. Carrel, apprehending that the animals might break their hal- 
ters, and run away, commanded, "All hands out!" In a few mo- 
ments, all our men, and even the four squaws, were out and ready 
to act, by Carrel's command. 

" Let every one take hold of his mules!" Every thing was done, 
accordingly. Ned also could, with the assistance of the dogs, ma- 
nage the other animals. The only real disagreeableness for us in 
this natural event was, that we were all deluged by a wholesale 
shower-bath, which followed immediately after the principal clap of 
thunder. Poor Johns was not a little teased by our many questions 
about thunder-bolts and thunder-fever, with which Donalson sup- 
posed him to be affected; consequently, he kept up the general 
hilarity by proposing to Johns that he should protect himself with a 
portable lightning rod, made in imitation of Dr. Franklin's electrical 
kite, and wound, like a serpent, about Johns, from top to toe. 

After the thunder-storm and rain, which lasted for half an hour, 
with uninterrupted vehemence, we had enough to do until evening, 
in drying, or rather, in trying to dry, ourselves and our things, as 
we had no dry fuel to make a fire. Carrel, therefore, judiciously 
proposed, and we all agreed with him, that every person of the com- 
pany should drink a small glass of good brandy, which we had taken 
along with us for such emergencies as the present. Thus fortified and 
warmed by a dram, which now was a real benefit, every one of us 
retired to his or her couch, covered by a tent, or a lodge, before 
night had set in, during which time our scouts were relieved every 
quarter of an hour. By this arrangement we were all equally kept 
in good spirits and in good health, which had always been excellent 
with us in general, since our first start together. 

It seemed that the thunder-storm — extraordinary in such a late 
season — was the precursor of snow and cold weather: for, after that 
day, snow fell almost continually; and when we reached, on Christ- 
mas eve, (Sunday, 24th of December,) the mouth of the south fork 
of the Platte river, the snow was over one foot deep ! Thus we 
were under the necessity to stop our progress here, at least until we 
should be able to find a more convenient place in the vicinity. A 
proper spot was chosen, and cleared of snow by means of our shovels,^ 
of which each man of the company had one: and, after two hours' 
labour, our tents and lodges were pitched. 

We soon became impressed with the necessity that our daily task 
would be, as long as the snow was falling, to clear it away from our 
camp every morning and every evening, so that we would not be 



( 40 ) 

burled under it, if it should continue to fall as it now did. We 
therefore all felt hnppy in finding a place iit for our purpose, on the 
bank of the South Fork, at the end of a plain, which was protected by 
palisades. We got rid of all our snow, within tiie enclosure, by 
throwing it over the rock bank into the river — which served us, at 
the same time, as a natural defence on that side; the other one being 
defended by the palisades. In a corner of our enclosure we built 
a stable, covered with twigs and skins, for our animals. 

A forest which skirted the river, as far as we could see, furnished 
us timber and fuel enough to build our fort and to make ourselves 
comfortable during the vvinter. As a mr.tter of necessity, we has- 
tened to complete our fortifications, which were made of wood and 
stone or sand, just as it was fit. The palisades were loop-holed, and 
the entrance was to be shut by a strong wooden door, during the 
night and an eventual attack. The river gave us plenty of good water, 
and our provisions were not only judiciously divided, but we also 
provided ourselves with additional food, by hunting in the neigh- 
bourhood. The week between Christmas and new year we spent 
in building our fort, which vve properly called " Phalanx Fort," 
wherein we celebrated new year's day, 1S50, with all the mirth pos- 
sible in such a wilderness. We agreed upon firing only one gun in 
celebration of the new year's commencement, in order not to waste 
much powder. 

An important discovery was made on new year's day, by Down- 
ing. He found that the Fork river contained a great quantity of 
small water-plants, growing in and floating on the water. As they 
proved to be good for our animals, as feed, mixed with the remain- 
ing oats we had brought along, we did not apprehend getting short 
of the latter article for some weeks. 

All the members of our Phalanx vied with each other to perform 
their respective duties. They were divided every day in four parlies 
— one, for staying in the fort, as its garrison, and preparing sapper, 
which was our principal daily meal; the second, for collecting and 
cutting wood in the neighbouring forest; the third, for collecting 
water-plants in the river, and feeding our animals; the fourth, for 
hunting, within some miles around our fort. However, all were 
bound to return before dark every night, and in case of any one's 
danger, he was to fire two successive shots with his double-barrelled 
ritle — a constant companion of every one. The ringing of the alarm 
bell was to call the members, all arid every one, to the fort, in any 
case of common danger or great urgency. In order to make our 
common defence as complete as possible, our four squaws were also 
exercised in fighting and shooting, so that after a sliort tim.e they had 
become real Amazons. 

Yonka, in particular, distinguished herself by skill and swiftness. 
She loaded and fired her double-barrelled rifle six times, while Hec- 
tor, who was the best rifleman of our company, and had been a rifle- 
maker by trade, in Paris, for many years, could do so with his own 
five times only; and, in fencing, she was inferior to none but Bertie, ' 
who, as a fencing-master, surpassed every other man of oui" Piiakox. 



( 41 ) 

Although we got every day an addition to the stock of feed for 
our animals, it becan:ie necessary, in consequence of their large con- 
suming number, to increase that stock by a more extensive gather- 
ing of the water-plants in the river, and thus to prevent an eventual 
deficiency of forage, on which our common fate greatly — if not en- 
tirely — depended. We therefore resolved U|)on going and continuing 
every day to forage in a mass, until we should have a store of fodder 
for one month in advance, at least, before we vv'ould slop foraging. 

The weather seemed to favour us in this most necessary enterprise. 
The frost had subsided, and the snow was melting fast away during 
the second week of January, when the foraging expedition was re- 
solved upon by tiie Phalanx. The three married couples and Ned 
were to remain in the Fort, with eighteen mules and the Indian 
ponies, except the two of Yonka, as she would absolutely go along 
with the party, — Waanataa, of course, being one of the latter. 

In order not to lose a great deal of time by returning every even- 
ing to, and starting anew every morning from, the Fort, the foragers. 
were to make ricks of the water-plants near the banks of the river, 
and to camp every night together, — twenty-two men and Yonka, 
with their forty-four mules, her two ponies, and three of the dogs 
taken along for hunting purposes. They took provisions for one 
week, during which their animals sliould live on water-plants, 
mixed with some oats. After the lapse of one week, the party 
should either return, or send a messenger to the Fort, .taking 
the way along the river. Not later than one day after that lime 
those remaining in the Fort should despatch Ned to look out for the 
party or the messenger along the river. When all these precautions 
were agreed upon, the foraging party left the Fort early in the morn- 
ing, on Monday, the 15th of January. 

At the end of the same day, the company proceeded eleven miles 
upwards, along the right hand bank of the river, completing fifteen 
ricks of forage. On the next day they made eighteen miles and 
fourteen ricks, and so they went on till Thursday noon, when they 
had proceeded fift3'^-seven miles, and completed forty-nine ricks. 

Waanataa and Yonka had left the party early in the morning, he 
on his mule, and she on her pony, in opposite directions, to hunt in 
the neighbouring forest, where they had expected to find and shooi 
some game for our dinner: and, indeed, before noon Waanataa re- 
turned with a fine deer, carried b}' his second mule, and reported 
that he had discovered some fresh traces of Indians, but of neither 
Pawnees, nor any other tribe of his knowledge, which comprised 
Arapahoes, Kioways and Camanches, besides those with whom we 
had already met. He therefore supposed these traces to be of Gros- 
"V'entres, whose acquaintance we did not wish to make, if we could 
not do so as friends. 

We felt uneasy on account of Yonka, who had not returned about 
three o'clock in the afternoon, and we all resolved upon searching 
for her. Before we started, we tried the expedient to fire two rifii:;- 
shots, in quick succession, repeating them at an interval of one 
minute, four limes, whereupon we had the pleasure of hearing the 



■( 42 ) 

reports of two shots, and, soon after, two others, quickly succeeding 
'•'That's Yonka," cried Hector, <•' she, and nol)ody else, can reload a 
double-barrelled gun in such a short time." After a few minutes, 
Yonka came trotting on her pony into our midst, greeting us with a 
lively exclamation, "Dear brothers!" — whereupon we cordially 
bade her welcome, as our "Dear sister!" She immediately spoke, 
with some excitement, to Waanataa, who interpreted her report as 
follows : 

" When I lost sight and could hear no more of our party, my at- 
tention was engaged by some traces of footsteps on the ground, but 
I could not recognise them, and rode on, following their track for 
some hours, intending to return, and sure to find my way back. At 
last, I came to a lodge, quite otherwise built than ours, in a distance 
from here of about one day's walk. When I approached, a small 
dog issued from the lodge, barking and jumping to and fro, when a 
woman appeared, with a boy, at the door, and called the dog in, I 
stopped, and cried several times. Dear sister! I love you ! but she did 
not understand me, and shook her head in answer, then, pointing at 
me, she nodded, and cried ' Amiga ! Amiga !'" 

Here Waanataa and Yonka were simultaneously interrupted by 
Martinez and Sylvio, who observed that "Amiga is a Spanish word, 
meaning a (female) friend," in consequence of which they supposed 
that woman to be either Spanish or Mexican, but probably the lat- 
ter. Yonka and Waanataa continued : 

" As it appeared to me that she was frightened, and in order to 
convince her of my peaceable disposition, I raised, with one hand, 
my rifle, and with the other, my pistol, and fired, successively, their 
four shots into the air; and, without knowing what the word meant, 
I nodded, smiling, and repeated 'Amiga!' wh.ereupon she winked, 
and bade me enter, which I did, unhesitatingly. There was, by the 
side of the entrance, a stone basin, with a little water and a small 
brush in it, which she took up, and after sprinkling a few drops 
upon me, she moved her right fore-finger thus + before me and 
herself." 

" That was ' Agua bendita,' or holy water!" interrupted Martinez, 
and Sylvio added, "and the ' Benedicion,' or benediction!" Ac- 
coi'dingly, they declared that woman to be a Catholic. Yonka and 
Waanataa resumed: 

"She repeated several times, 'Teresa!' pointing at herself, and 
'Alejo!' pointing at her little boy, five years old, which she expressed 
to me by showing one of her hands with stretched fingers. Hence 
1 inferred that Teresa and Alejo were their names, and telling her, 
repeatedly, my own, while I pointed at myself, I succeeded in 
in-inging her to understand it, when she said, 'Yonka! bien-venida!' 
taking and shaking my hand." 

"That means Welcome," observed Adam, who could not help 
showing his acquaintance with the Spanish language, and interrupt- 
ing Waanataa's translation, which continued : 

" I kissed little Alejo, whose mother jjave me to eat and to drink 
whatever her kind hospitality seemed able to bestow on me — Indian 



( 43 ) 

calies and milk of mountain sheep, I ate and drank with pleasure, 
while she conversed with me by signs and gestures, which gave me 
the idea that she had a husband, absent, on a journey in the south- 
west, whither she pointed, saying, 'Pueblo!' and repeating several 
times, ' Don Valerio Mendoza !' " 

"Nombre de Dios !" (Name of God!) cried Sylvio, in delighi, 
" Valerio is a very good friend of mine, with whom I lived at Pueblo 
six 3'ears ago, when he married his 'cara' (dear) Teresa. I was at 
their wedding, and we danced the Fandango in best style. 7^he 
town of Pueblo is situated on this side of yonder mountains, west of 
Bent's Fort, and north of Santa Fe, forming with these two places 
an almost equiangular triangle, Santa Fe being equally distant from 
either, but accessible from Pueblo via Bent's Fort only, and not di- 
rectly, on account of the interjacent mountains. Valerio has pro- 
babl}^ become a (ree trapper. I always thought and foretold him so, 
for I knew his trapping disposition, as he is a first rate hunter. If 
we could engage him to assist me as a guide, I think we would 
safely reach Pueblo, and thence proceed to Bent's Fort, without 
meeting with the Gros- Ventres, who should thus be kept ignorant 
of our march through these regions, if we can help it, as long as we 
are still on this side of Bent's Fort, beyond which we shall be out 
of their reach. Martinez! will you accompany me on a visit to 
Mendoza's habitation to-morrow ?" 

"Con muchissimo gusto!" (with very much pleasure !) answered 
Martinez, and Carrel observed : 

" According to Yonka's report, it's not more than a (^ew hours' 
ride thither, and we all may as well as you two only, pay a visit to- 
morrow to Dona Teresa and Senorico Alejo, (Master Alexis,) with- 
out any inconvenience, or intruding upon her hospitality, as we have 
a sufficient quantity of provisions for us and feed for our animals. 
Who will volunteer to ride, in the mean time, back to the Fort, to 
bring some intelligence thither and thence back to us, along the ricks, 
where we may meet again ?" 

Bolzano and Tivocati declared themselves willing to perform that 
service. So they both started, with their four nuiles and one of the 
dogs, early the next morning for the enst, while the other twenty 
men and Yonka, with the two other dogs, rode through the forest 
towards Mendoza's habitation, which they reached at noon. 

In order not to frighten the "Senora'" and her " H.ijico," (little 
son,) by our great number ap|)earing all at once, we dismounted and 
camped at about one mile's distance from the habitation, whither 
Yonka walked with Sylvio and Martinez, intending to surprise her 
more agreeably by coming on foot. ^ 

Teresa wept for joy at seeing again her husbarKl's friend Sj^lvio, 
after so many years. She called him " Caro Hermano," (Den- 
Brother,) and kissed Yonka, as her "Cara Hermana," (Dear Sister,) 
for having brought him thither, whereupon she also welcomed Mar- 
tinez, and was delighted in hearing him likewise talk Spanish. She 
would prepare something to refresh her visiters, but Sylvio thanked 
her once for all, stating, in a few words our circumstances, and in- 



( 44 ) 

tcntions concerning our expedition. She expressed the desire to 
r-ce us in our camp, while she dressed herself and her Alejico (liule 
Alexis,) for going out, and soon they started, accompanied by iiis 
faithful playmate, the barking and bounding Fido. 

Before they arrived in the camp, Carrel advanced politely to greet 
ihe Senora, and we followed him for the same purpose. Sylvio was 
carrying Alejico on his arms, and presented him to our kisses, while 
our two dogs jumped joyfully up to Sylvio, their principal patron, 
who often caressed and trcaied them, as he was very fond of dogs 
in general, and of them in particular. But Fido, not less courageous 
than faithful, mistaking their jumps as attacks on Master Alejo, bit 
ihem with such a fury, that they, in self-defence and revenge used 
likewise their teeth, and bit Fido, in one moment, so horribly that 
the poor little dog vvas dead before we could interfere to prevent the 
unequal struggle. 

Dona Teresa exclaimed in despair, " Ay! que dfesgracia ! o Cielos! 
que pena!" (Oh ! what a mischief! Heavens! what an affliction )) — 
while Alejo wept bitterly, and repeated his plaintive cries, "Fidijo 
mio! Perrico mio!" (My little Fido! my little dog!) But poor 
Fido was gone forever! — bitten into eternity by two uncouth In- 
dian dogs, and we could not make the mischief undone even if we 
had killed them both in expiation of little Fido's tragical end. Our 
well-intentioned proposal of a compensation to Dona Teresa was, at 
first declined by her; hou'ever, through Sylvio's intervention and 
persuasion, she vvas at length prevailed upon accepting one of our 
dogs as Fido's substitute, called "Matador," (murderer,) for having 
bitten poor Fido to death ; and the accomplice with Matador we gave 
in equal justice, the name of " Asasino." In order to reconcile the 
mother and son with our company as well as possible, Yonka pre- 
sented them with her second pony, as an additional compensation, 
which Teresa was obliged to accept, declaring that she and her 
Alejo were now more than consoled and satisfied. Yonka forced 
Teresa immediately to mount, with Alejico, upon her pony, and thus 
return riding. 

As Sylvio supposed, his friend Valerio had become a free trapper, 
and was just out on a journey to Pueblo, engaged in selling skins 
and purchasing household articles there, whence his wife expected 
him to return home during the present week. So she told Sylvio 
while she rode with him back to her habitation, followed by the 
others. - 

On the short way thither, Yonka directed Waanataa's attention to 
a spot at some distance, v»diere a body was slowly moving or creep- 
ing along the edge of a shrubbery. Labouring under the impression 
to meet there some game, Waanataa directed his mule to the sus- 
picious place, and Yonka followed him on her pony, both preparing 
their rifles for instant use; but scarcely had they begun to proceed 
thither, when they perceived an Indian spring up and run along the 
shrubbery, with the swiftness of an antelope, disappearing in the 
thicket of the forest only a few seconds after they had seen him rise. 

"What's that?" cried Carrel, pointing to the apparition, and, at 



( 45 ) 

the same time, Teresa exclaimed, lookinu; t!)ither, "Santissima Vif' 
gen!" (most holy Virgin !) •' un Camancho !" — '-'A Camanche!'^ 
cried and repeated nineteen voices in a chorus, and the whple caval- 
cade started in a gallop after VVaanataa and Yonka, who had both, in 
the mean time, reached and entered the forest in pursuit of the Ca- 
manche, recognised also by them as belonging to that tribe. Yonka, 
whose pony ran better than Waanataa's -mule, came nearest to the 
fugitive, and saw him leap down into a narrow precipice, whither 
she could not and would not venture to follow him, and in which he 
vanished out of her sight at the same instant when Waanataa arrived 
there also. They rode back to the skirt of the forest, where they 
met with the others, discussing about what was to be done. Waa- 
nataa said, — 

" Let us take that lady and her child along with us, and return to 
our Fort as fast as possible, without minding our ricks for the present. 
I suspect that sneaking fellow to be sent out by a body of marauding 
Caraanches, as a spy, to reconnoitre our number and that of our ani- 
mals, for the purpose of attacking us, and of stealing them during the 
fight. Let us make haste, before they come hither in a body I" 

The appearance of the Camanche gave Donna Teresa cause to relate 
the following circumstances to Sylvio, who immediately communicated 
them, as very important to us, — on account of which we postponed 
our departure until the next morning. 

"Munoz, an old acquaintance of Teresa and of her hushand, had 
formerly been her adorer, but without success, as she never had given 
him the least encouragement, and finally married Valerio, six years 
ago. However, Munoz had the impudence to persecute her Mith his 
odious passion, even after she had lawfully become Valerio's wife, and 
in order to get rid of him and out of his reach, without bloodshed, the 
young couple had retired into the wilderness, where they thought 
Munoz would not find them out, — and which at the same tiwe, suited 
well Valerio's purpose to become a iree trapper. 

" Either by natural disposition or by despair, on account of rejected 
love, which now was immoral and criminal ibr a man of honour, 
Munoz had turned leader of a band of Mexican guerillas, during the 
war between Mexico and the United States, — and, after the treaty of 
peace, they had turned a band of outlaws, v/ho infested the Santa Fe 
route and its vicinities, being a terrible scourge in these regions, par- 
ticularly for emigrants and other travellers along that route. Mimoz 
had now, as a captain of robbers, full power to satisfy his rapacity ; 
hut he would have laid all his treasures, accumulated by manifold 
robberies and murders, at Teresa's feet, for the sake of her love. This 
she knew positively, as he had told her so himself, in her own habita- 
tion, and not longer than a few days ago. 

" Only think of my consternation !" said Teresa to Sylvio, " vA\en 
Munoz was standing before me, last Sunday morning, just when I rose 
from my prayer to the Holy Virgin ! But he instantly raised his 
right hand, pointing to our crucifix, and said, ' Teresa I I swear, by 
the holy name of our Saviour, that 1 will not harm vou or — any 
one else.' 



( 46 ) 

*' Well!" answered I, "Why do you come hither into our peaceful 
abode? Why don't you cease to persecute us, even here, in the 
wilderness?" 

'• Teresa !" replied he, " I entreat you, listen to me I But where is 
Valerio? Let him also hear what I have to say I" 

" My husband is gone to Pueblo, and will probably return hither at 
the end of this week," rejqined I, with a feigned confidence, " but, 
Munoz ! if innocence and virtue cannot prevent you from doing 
wrong," — I took Alejo before me, and posted myself with him under 
the crucifiN: — "ray dagger shall either save or kill me!" So saying, 
I grasped the dagger attached to my belt. 

" I am not such a monster as you suppose me to be, Teresa," an- 
swered he, with a mournful countenance, " your little one's innocence 
and your virtue are more than sufficient, but your dagger is unneces- 
sary to defend you against me : trust rae ! if you cannot love me !" 

"*I trust you, Munoz,' replied I, 'but I cunnot love you; my love 
belongs to Valerio, my husband. You know that 1 never encou- 
raged you to love me, before you became a robber, a criminal who 
constantly violates the laws of God and man. And do you think now, 
Munoz — after you bave become an outcast and a murderer, after you 
have stained your hands with innocent human blood — that I can ever 
love you ? ' 

"•Angel of heaven!' exclaimed he, and wept bitterly, covering his 
face and falling down upon bis knees, ' Teresa! lead me back to the 
path of honour! Save my soul from eternal ruin!' 

'"1 will pray to the Holy Virgin for you, and be your sister, as 
Valerio shall become your brother, if you will repent, — if you turn 
an honest man ag^in.' Thus I spoke. 

'"Yes, I will do so,' replied he, in ecstns3\ 'I will deserve to be 
your brother. I swear by the name of the Holy Virgin, that I will, 
as much as possible, atone for my crimes, and live now as an 
honest man, like my brother Valerio, your noble husband.' 

"He kissed my hand, which I stretched out to raise him; then he 
took Alejo up and kissed him also, whereupon he sighed and said 
with a deep emotion, ' How happy brother Valerio must be to have 
such a wife and such a son! Well,' continued he, as if speaking to 
himself, 'I am a criminal, and Valerio has always been an honest man : 
how can I be or deserve to be as happy as he is?' 

"'But there is no time now for idle talk about such things; your 
lives are in danger, and, my love — no! forgive me that expression! 
— dear sister ! My friendship for you, drove me hither to warn you. 
A great war-cry is novv sounding among the Indians along the new 
boundary-line between the United States, our new country, and Me- 
jico, our old country. The Apachos and the Camanches, supposed 
to be secretly instigated by Santa Anna, will invite tlie Grusos-Vi- 
entres to join them in waging a bloody guerilla-war against those of 
the Americanos (Americans) who are travelling in large crowds on 
the Great Santa Fe Route to California, where they have discovered 
rich gold mines.' 

"' Many marauding and plundering Mejicanos (Mexicans) will not 



[( 47 ) 

join the red-skins, whom they despise as inferior to the whites; but 
they will remain independent guerrillas — so they call themselves, 
while they are nothing else than robbers — waging war against the 
Americanos, that is, plundering and murdering all the travellers they 
meet, without distinction, men, women and children. Being dis- 
gusted with such a life, (although hitherto those under my command 
have murdered neither women nor children, but only such men as 
would fight, and not surrender their property,) I have proposed to my 
followers an expedition to El Dorado, California, where we may ho- 
nestly get gold without bloodshed and plunder. About two-thirds — 
eighteen — of them have adhered to my plan, willing to remain and 
to act under my direction; the ten others have declared that they 
need not go so far to acquire gold, which they can get with much 
less trouble on the Santa Fe route, and they will become — at least 
they expect so — leaders of Indian guerrillas or marauders. Mateo, 
the worst and most blood-thirsty of all my followers, has already be- 
come the leader of a band of about forty or fifty Camanchos, roaming 
within a hundred miles around here. I apprehend that they may 
find you out, and plunder, or even kill you, with your husband and 
child ; for a marauding Camancho is worse than the worst bandido 
Mejicano, Thus I have come hither, knowing your retreat, to ac- 
quaint you with the threatening danger, of which nobody else could 
inform you. But now I regret most heartily that Valerio is absent, 
or else I would have invited you and him to accompany us in our ex- 
pedition to California. In the mean time, until his return home, I 
will go and fetch my company, with whom I will come hither and 
protect you from any attack of marauding Camanchos or Meji- 
canos.' 

"He took leave by kissing my hand respectfully, promising not 
to lose one hour till his return to protect us with the assistance of 
his followers. You may now conceive my fright at seeing that Ca- 
mancho, who is probably one of Mateo's marauding band.'' 

This communication caused us immediately to consider what was 
to be done. We could not leave Teresa alone with her child, and 
our own safety required a speedy return to our fort, which might be 
attacked and taken with its small garrison before we could reach it. 
Yonka heroically and generously declared to remain with Teresa, 
but Waanataa would either stay also, or have them and Alejo taken 
along with us to the fort; however, Teresa refused to leave her habi- 
tation before the return of her husband. At length we agreed with 
each other in the following plan: 

Yonka, Waanataa, Sylvio and Adam should stay with Teresa and 
Alejo, until Valerio's return, whether or not Munoz and his compa- 
nions should come ; the other seventeen men of our company were 
to start the next morning for the fort, and there wait for the arrival 
of their four remaining companions, either with or without Valerio 
and his family. 

Bolzano and Tivocati had safely reached the fort, and thence re- 
turned immediately, according to what they had promised, riding 
upwards the South Fork along the ricks, where they met with the 



( 48 ) 

other party of eighteen men, about fifteen miles from the fort, whi- 
ther they now returned together. 

Valeiio's habitation had, in the mean time, become the scene of a 
most interesting drama, in which different characters were more than 
Jiitherto developed. 

One day hod elapsed after the departure of the main body of our 
party, when Valerie arrived from Pueblo, quite astonished at finding 
so many strangers at his habitation ; but when his wife told him who 
they were, and how they had come thither, and particularly when he 
recognised his friend Sylvio, his joy was still greater than his sur- 
])rise had been. They immediately acquainted him with every thing 
concerning Munoz, who was expected every moment, and might 
have caused fatal mistakes and mischief; but after this explanation 
Valerie was ready to receive his former rival like a brother. 

When Valerie learned the cause why the other visiters were 
there, he expressed to them his heort-felt gratitude for their gene- 
rosity, and after consulting Teresa, he declared himself and his wife 
vt'illing to join the Phalanx, if the other members would adopt them 
as their brother and sister. Adam took the responsibility to answer 
in the name of all, that they both, with their Alejico, should from 
that moment be considered as belonging to the Phalanx. They now 
resolved upon leaving the habitation all together for the Phalanx 
fort as soon as Valerie and his family should be ready, which he ex- 
pected would be in two or three days. 

They were interrupted in their conversation by seeing a company 
of about twenty armed men arrive and encamp at a little distance 
from the habitation. 

"Munoz and his companions," cried Valerie and Teresa. A few 
mom.ents after Munoz knocked at the door, which they opened, re- 
eeiving him with all the affection due to a repentant sinner. He would 
begin an apologizing conversation with Valerie, but was cordially 
requested by h.im, once for all, never to speak of the past; whereup- 
on he acquainted him with Sylvio, Waanataa, Yonka and Adam, as 
members of a company on their journey to California, whose main 
body were residing in a fort about fifty miles distant, with sixty or 
seventy mules and horses. Valerie added, that he and his wife would 
also join the company, and emigrate to California, but Munoz did not 
listen to that, and seemed deeply lost in thought for some moments. 
At length he said: 

"I hope that no more persons have been here lately, who belong 
to that company." 

"Why not?" asked Teresa. "Certainly; fifteen or twenty more 
of themi have been here." 

"With mules?" inquired Munoz anxiously. 

"Yes," answered Teresa; "every one of them had two mules." 

Munoz then gave, in Spanish, the following account, which Sylvio 
interpreted: 

"A few miles from here I met with Mateo and his band, consist- 
ing of about one hundred Camanchos. The fool is almost crazy 
with pride to be the commander-in-chief of so large a body of ma- 



( 49 ) 

rauding red-sltins. He asked me, whether I and my eighth- . •- .' - 
panion? had not yet given up our 'foolish fanc}'-,' as he called it, to 
live honestly and roB no more. I of course answered negatively, 
and told him that he had better follow my example. He laughed 
scornfully, and said 

'"Munoz, what big fools are you all! Look here at these hun- 
dred brave Camanchos. They are all on foot now, like your poor 
fellows, but before this evening some fifty mules shall probably be 
ours, and as many of us shall then be Caballeros.* One of my spies 
has discovered about here a whole caballeria, (cavalcade,) consisting 
of twenty men, nineteen Americanos and one Indio, each with two 
mules, besides one Mejicana with one Hijico mounted on a pony, 
and one Indio mounted on another pony. My fellow, a cunning 
Camancho, was lying in a bush, observing the caballeria, and count- 
ing the number of their animals, when the rascally red-skin and his 
squaw discovered him, creeping a little way to a place where he 
would be more concealed from their sight, and they both began im- 
mediately a chase after him, followed by the whole caballeria. The 
squaw was foremost, as her pony ran like a diablo, and would have 
probably despatched him with her double-barrelled rifle if she had 
reached him, but he had too good a start of her and the other red- 
skin, and suddenly vanished, jumping into a narrow precipice whi- 
ther they could not and durst not follow him. But he will soon 
have an opportunity to pay them for that chase." 

They all agreed in the opinion that they were in a most horrible 
situation, as it was more than probable that Mateo and his band lay 
in the vicinity or even around the habitation, expecting to catch 
therein the whole company with all the animals at once. 

'There is no use in fighting," said Munoz, after some reflection, 
"as we are too few, being only twenty-four or twenty-five in num- 
ber, while Mateo has a hundred savage rascals at his command, who 
would kill and scalp us all in less than one hour, even if we should 
fight like lions, being one against four. Let us therefore act with 
cunning, instead of fighting, until your other friends will come hi- 
ther and assist us in beating off these marauding ruffians, for the pur- 
pose of ^yhich a message must be sent to your fort. I would under- 
take to perform that^service if I could leave you, but I must stay 
here and protect you, by keeping Mateo in check through my still 
remaining influence on him; so the difficulty now is to carry the 
message to the fort and to give up your animals to these rascals, 
which sacrifice, I think, is necessary to satisfj'- the latter in the mean 
time," and which we may perhaps recover by our succeeding vic- 
tory." 

"Your suggestions, Don Munoz, are excellent," said Adam, "and 
with your assistance we may save ourselves, by sacrificing for the 
present our animals, and by fighting afterwards all together and van- 
quishing Mateo and his band." 

"My fellows might leave you and join Mateo's band," said Mu- 

* Caballero means Cavalier and Gentleman, 



( 50 ) 

noz, "or else I would carry your message to the fort, as Mateo 
would not think of preventing me and my followers from going any 
where. But I must keep them in their good resolutio,ns by my pre- 
sence and by sharing their fate whatever it may be." 

Waanataa said : 

*'If none of us can get across these wicked Camanches, to carry 
the message to our fort, a dog may get through without attracting 
their attention; so I propose Matador as our messenger. Brother 
Adam, write a letter in French to Carrel, as Mateo might have 
learnt to understand a little English, in consequence of mingling 
with Americans. I will fasten that letter under Matador's neck 
with a string around it and a piece of red cloth on the top, to attract 
the attention of those in the fort; but poor Matador must have no- 
thing to eat and a good flogging, before we let him go, that he may 
run the faster to the fort." 

"Waanataa!" cried Adam, '-you are a capital fellow and more 
cunning than we all together. I will write immediately, and you 
may beat Matador a little in the mean while; but we must after- 
^vards well compensate the poor dog for those sufferings and good 
services." 

He took a piece of a paper, tvhich he always carried with him as 
our journalist, and wrote the following message: 

"Dear Brother: We are surrounded by a hundred hostile Ca- 
manche Indian robbers, commanded by Mateo, a Mexican, to whom 
we will sacrifice our animals while you are coming to attack them 
from the outside, when we shall do .so simultaneously from our side. 
Come all ! leaving the women in the fort with the mules, except 
those you will mount to come hither to Valerio's habitation; he, 
his wife and his son; Sylvio, Waanataa, Yonka and myself, with a 
friend to V. Munoz, who is the chief of IS men, ready to fight for 
us. When you will arrive or attack, let every rifle or pistol be fired 
twice successively — we will do the same. Let our watchword be 
'California,' and the answer be 'Phalanx!' Every other writing 
which is not accompanied b}^ a copy of this is null; arrest and shoot 
the bearer of such a message as a robber. Matador shall bring you 
this. Written on Saturday, at noon, January 27. Adam." 

After reading this message to the others, whs all agreed with its 
contents, Adam copied and folded it up in letter form, addressing it 
to the "Phalanx." Then Waanataa wrapped it carefully up and 
fastened it under Matador's neck, as he had before said ; then he 
unchained and gave the poor dog some more blows with a stick, 
whereupon Matador began to cry and to run like a locomotive, 
while the company expressed to each other their regrets at being 
compelled by danger and necessity to such a cruel expedient. 

Matador had scarcely run away, when one of the men com- 
manded by Munoz reported, that Mateo's Camanchos were forming 
a wide circle around the habitation. 

Soon after Mateo made his appearance at the door, greeting the 
persons present with an assumed air of dignity and politeness, which 
were indeed nothing but a clownish haughtiness. 



( 51 ) 

Munoz went to meet Mateo at the door, Valerlo and Sylvio fol- 
lowing his example, to shake hands with the new-comer; while Wa- 
anataa and Adam only bowed a little towards him. Yonka and 
Teresa with Alejico were sitting in a corner. Munoz introduced 
Valerio and Sylvio to Mateo as two friends, whom he had formerly 
known at Santa Fe and Pueblo, where they were still engaged in 
the skin-trade. 

"Bien, muy bien," (well, very well,) said Mateo in reply ; " then 
they have money and mules, I suspect." 

' Of course they have these two articles," answered Munoz with 
a smile, "and I have already told them that you are very fond of 
such things." 

"Ha! ha! ha!" laughed Mateo, "have you? that's right. If you 
will, you shall have your part of the booty; as to that of the beauty, 
I know that you have come hither only to secure that before your 
departure for El Dorado." 

He said the last twenty words in a rather low tone, not to be 
understood by the others. At a wink from Adam, Sylvio left him, 
and went with Valerio to the corner, where Teresa and Yonka were 
sitting, with whom they began also in a low conversation, in which 
VVaanataa joined with Yonka, so that Adam sat writing alone. 

" Quien es este Caballero ?" (Who is that gentleman ?) inquired 
Mateo, and Munoz replied: 

" Un Americano, who neither understands nor speaks one word 
of Spanish; therefore, we may talk here behind or before him, what- 
ever we like, without any danger of being understood and be- 
trayed by him. In English he is a great scholar, and at the same 
time a great fool, as all those learned fellows are, you know, who 
read and write books : the more they study and write the less they 
know of and do for the world. He is always writing his journal, 
which, like many another writing of that kind, will never be read 
and good for any thing, except perhaps for wrapping cheese in. 
But, Mateo, I entreat you, don't .mention to any body what you 
know of my life hitherto, nor what I have told you of my love to 
Donna Teresa ; for if V^alerio should learn that, he would get crazy 
with jealous}' and not go along with her to California, whither I 
will induce them to emigrate with me. Keep your tongue, and I 
will help you to get the mules and the money of these other fel- 
lows, on the condition that you give me half of what you shall get 
of the latter article, of which they have a good deal, I know. But 
you must not shed any blood: no murder is necessary, if you will 
do as I tell you." 

" Bravo ! " whispered Mateo; " you talk like a learned man, al- 
thiOugh not like a fool, Munoz. What will you have me to do ? " 

" First, you must promise me not to shed blood. Then I will act 
as an old friend of yours." 

"Caramba, indeed! " answered Mateo in a suppressed pas- 
sion; " have you all at once turned a real saint, to be thus afraid of 
human blood? Napoleon is called a 'Gran Heroe,' (great hero,) 
like x\lejandro Magno, (Alexander the Great,) because he has shed 



( 53 ) 

so much human blood that great lakes could have been filled with if. 
The more blood is shed by such a 'hero,' the greater is his 'glory ' 
before the world. However, I don't care for glory, if I can get 
mules and mone}^, for which 1 will give you my word as a bravo 
Bandido Mejicano not to kill any of your friends, or of those ca- 
balleros Americanos, if I can help it, that is, if they give me their 
mules and their money without fighting." 

"Mateo!" flattered Munoz, "if I had not sworn to give up 
robbing, I would go along vvith you, even under your command; 
for I see you have there a fine number of daring fellows, althoui^h 
they be mere red-skins, who obey you as their capitan, or rather 
as their 'Gran-Jefe,' (great chief;) never mind their inferiority tu 
white people ! they make up in quantity what they lack in quality. 
Now tell me: what shall be my part of your booty in money, if 
I tell you how you can get all the money of that whole company of 
Americanos, with all their mules?" 

" I must know first, how much money they have, which my spy 
could not see, who only counted their mules to be forty. Let us 
ask that escritorcillo (polygraph or ink-blotting fellow) how much 
money he and his comrades have in their possession." 

Mateo took a Spanish quarter-dollar out of his pocket, showed 
it to Adam, and said : 

"Caballero! Cuanto?" (How much ?) 

Adam, feigning to understand that Mateo asked him how much 
that piece was worth, wrote upon the margin of his journal : "twen- 
ty-five cents ! " 

"Porvida mia !" (By my life!) said Mateo, angrily, "Such a 
learned fellow is more stupid than a mulo!" trying to make Adam 
better understand him by speaking broken Spanish, he continued: 
" Cuantas pesas? cuantas piastras? Caballeros Americanos!" (How 
many dollars? how many piasters? gentlemen Americans!) 

Adam did not think proper to feign any longer not to understand 
what the robber meant, and wrote upon a piece of paper 20 X 50 
= 1000 plasters! 

"Mil piastras!" (One thousand piasters!) — cried Mateo, "pro- 
bably twenty men, each vvith fifty piasters and forty mules — thnt 
will do for commencing! — Muy bien ! (Very well!) — but where 
are now the other fellows ? I have ordered my Camanches to form 
a circle around here and let nobody escape. During these tvvo hours 
no living creature left these premises, except a dog, running like a 
startled antelope, after being missed by one of my fellows, who was 
furious at- having fired a shot for nothing, as he w^ould have had a 
great relish in eating the dog roasted. Have those other Caballeros 
hidden themselves about here?'^ 

" As much as I have been able to understand that learned jack- 
ass," answered Munoz, with a slight motion of his hand toward 
Adam, "I think that his company have a camp at a distance of 
about one day's ride from here, upwards along the next river. I 
advise you to let him write a note in English to his companions, 
that they shall pay to the bearer 1000 piasters, and deliver up to 



( 53 ) 

Ivim the Ihirty-six mules they have there, the piasters and the mules 
being to ransom him from you and your Camanchos, whose num- 
ber he must write to be 500 at least, so that they will not think of 
refusing to ransom him, or of attacking such a large body of war- 
riors. In order that you may somewhat understand his writing 
let him use cyphers and words which are the same or similar in 
Spanish and in English. 1000 piastras or piasters — 36 mulos or 
mules — 500 Camanchos or Camanches. You may send me alone 
or with my fellows to bring that writing to the camp, whence I 
will return with your money and your mules, and be satisfied if 
you give me and my men 100 piasters for our service, — that will 
make ten for me and five for each of them, as they are eighteen. I 
think that is a very little reward for two days' job." 

" The first part of your proposed plan is very good, Munoz," 
replied Mateo, "and I will adopt it; but, concerning the second 
part of it, I have another opinion.- I like to do such a job myself, 
as it is a money business: however, if I get the whole ransom of 
1000, you shall have 100 piastras, for which you must keep the 
watch here with your eighteen fellows and let nobody leave the 
premises until I return hither, with six of my men, whom I will 
lake along, as I see here six mules and two ponies, which I reserve 
for me exclusively. When I come back, on the day after to-morrow, 
I expect you shall have one of the mules besides, and if your friend 
Valerie behaves well, that is, quietly, he also shall have one, and I 
will add one for Dona Teresa, out of respect for her, because I like 
to be gallant. Now try to let that Escritorcillo understand what 
he must write!" 

" Sylvio !" said Munoz, "you understand a little English, help 
me explain to the Caballero Americano that he must write to his 
friends in the camp for his ransom: 1000 piastras, payable to Mateo, 
the bearer of the writing, and 36 mulos, to be delivered up to him; 
if not, the writer shall be murdered by Mateo's Camanchos, whose 
number he must write to be 500." 

After a sufficient explanation, Adam feigningly refused to obey, 
until Mateo said, "I will threaten him with death: be not uneasy 
for him, as it is only a mockery!" 

He took, with his right hand, a pistol, and with his left, a dagger, 
from his belt, saying to Adam, " Veamos!" (let us see!) But in- 
stantly Waanataa stepped forth, grasping his tomahawk, and Mateo 
exclaimed : » 

"If that big red-skin dares budge another step, I will snoot him 
down like a dog. He is undoubtedly the rascal who, with his 
squaw there, gave chase the other day on my Camancho, who may 
take his own vengeance on them, when 1 think proper. Let them 
beware of him !" 

"Go back," said Adam to Waanataa, who obeyed, when Mateo 
pointed around the room to the several windows, through which 
an odd score of grim and savage faces of Camanches, armed with 
gi^ns, looked at every motion of their new chief, who continued : 



( 54 ) 

" When I came hither I relied on my guardia there, and no:::,ody 
else except myself." 

Now Adam wrote the following lines : 

"Companions — Pay 1000 piasters to Don Mateo, a noble and es- 
timable Mexican, captain of 500 Camanches, whose captive I am here 
at Don Valerio's habitation. Give Don Mateo also 36 mules for 
the life and liberty of Adam. 

" Saturday evening, January 27. 

" Nocopy ! 

" To the California Phalanx." 

Adam gave JNIateo the writing, who read it attentively, and was 
evidently satisfied by the similarity of many words in the English 
and Spanish languages, as he was thus persuaded that no deception 
took place. He read : 

"Companions (companeros) ; pay (pagar, pagad) ; piasters (pias- 
tras) ; noble (noble) ; estimable (estimable) ; captain (capitan) ; 
Camanches (Camanchos) ; captive (captivo) ; habitation (habita- 
cion) ; mules (mulos); liberty (libertad); Saturday (Sabado); Janu- 
ary (Enero) ; nocopy, noche (night. ) Does < nocopy ' mean noche?" 

" Yes. I suspect it shall mean your Night of Death," answered 
Adam, rather involuntarily. However, Sylvio did not deem it ad- 
visable to interpret that to Mateo, but only answered falsely to his 
inquiry after what Adam had said, '* He expressed his admiration 
for your ability to understand so many English words, when he used 
the exclamation. Are you satisfied now?" 

" Bien, muy bien," (well, very well,) replied Mateo, with self- 
conceit, or rather self-deceit, supposing that now everything was 
right and prepared for him — that he might only go and take posses- 
sion of 1000 piastres and 36 mules, after presenting Adam's note. 
He took it from his hands, folded it up and put it into his own 
pocket, saying: 

"Munoz, I hope to see you again here the day after to-morrow, 
when I will bring you the 100 piastras. In the mean time, good 
night, gentlemen and madam." 

Before night set in they saw how Mateo ordered his fellows to 
camp around the habitation; then he mounted upon one of Yonka's 
ponies and gave the other to one of his fellows, to let him run 
along, six of whom mounted upon Adam's, Sylvio's and VVaanataa's 
mules. At last the little cavalcade of marauders began to proceed 
towards the east, in the direction of the Phalanx fort. 

As soon as they had disappeared, Adam and his companions be- 
gan to prepare for an offensive and defensive struggle with Mateo's 
band. Valerio's whole habitation was immediately and silent]\- 
surrounded by the eighteen men under the command of Munoz 
who was to defend it with Valerio and Yonka, while Adam, Syl 
vio and Waanataa would sally forth at the same time, when the 
other Phalangarians would arrive from the east, probably fighting 
themselves through the main body of the blockading Camanches 
The whole succeeding night was thus spent in defensive prepara 
tions, particularly to preserve Teresa and Alejico from danger as 



( 55 ) 

much as possible. They were to retire into the cave connected 
with the habitation, if it should be set on fire by the Carnanches. 

At the fort, Carrel was busily engaged with seventeen of his com- 
j)anions, mounted on and leading besides, as many mules, while 
JNed kept the other mules and horses under his care, to bring the 
ricks to the fort, which task they had half completed on Saturday 
evening, when they encamped in the open air. It was midniglU; 
tlie three scouts on duty, Martinez, Bolzano and Pally, were riding 
around the camp, when poor Matador, exhausted with fatigue, hunger 
and cold, crept wagging and whining, unable or not daring to bark, 
before Martinez, who fortunately immediately recognised the faith- 
ful dog. 

"Matador!" exclaimed Martinez, discerning the good animal in 
the dark, and stroking its head, when his hand grasped the red cloth 
and the string around its neck, under which he felt the small package 
containing Adam's French letter, which he took off and carried 
hastily to Carrel, whom he waked from his sleep. 

In a few minutes Carrel roused the whole camp, and communi- 
cated lo his companions Adam's message, in consequence of which 
a council was immediately held, and the resolution taken that Ned 
should return directly and speedily to the fort with the message, 
accompanied by brave Matador, and take all the mules and horses 
along, each carrying a portion of the baggage and a load of water- 
plants, except eighteen mules, upon which Carrel and his compa- 
nions mounted, all well armed and resolute to fight as soon as ne- 
cessar}', when they immediatel}* started for the west along the ricks. 

It was on Sunday, the 2Sth day of January, at sun-rise, when 
Carrel and his seventeen companions stopped and dismounted near 
a little bush and a rick of water-plants, where they made a fire, and 
fed their mules, and then prepared a warm breakfast, which they 
ate with a good appetite, after half a night's fast ride. Scarcely had 
ihey done eating, when they were roused by the appearance of se- 
ven riders, six of whom they recognised to be Indians covered with 
dirty skins and rags, but armed with guns, while the seventh, evi- 
dently their leader, was dressed in a fantastical Spanish or Mexican 
costume. He rode upon an Indian pony, and the one next to him 
led another pony, while this Indian and the five others rode upon 
mules, which Carrel and his friends recognised as their own, and 
tiie two ponies as those belonging to Yonka. 

''That's Mateo and some of his marauding Camanches," said 
''arrel. " Now let us be ready to act and to fight, without showing 
our intentions too soon. Martinez, be our interpreter with that 
ruffian." 

"Gentlemen, whence do you come?"" cried Mateo, approaching 
with his fellows. 

"That is none of your business," replied Martinez, in Spanish, 
"nor do we care whence you come, or whither you go, and who 
you are; but if you will tell us that, perhaps, we will satisfy your 
rather impudent curiosit}', by giving you a proper answer." 

Mateo did not seem willing to resent the insult, undoubtedly out 



( 5f3 ) 

of respect for eighteen double-barrelled rifles and as many pairs of 
ditto pistols; for, instead of answering Martinez in the same tone, 
he humbly besjged his pardon, and added: 

"My name is Don Mateo, great chief of the Camanches, of whom 
I have about five hundred not far from here, all ready to fight; and 
it was not mere curiosity on my part which induced me to ask thiit; 
question, but because I have a message to deliver to a companv 
of caballeros, whom I supposed you to be." 

"By whom and to whom is that message written?" asked Mar- 
tinez, whose companions kept silent, and Mateo replied: 

"By Adam to the caballeros of the California Phalanx." Hi«^ 
voice began to falter, and his features bespoke the consciousness oT 
a criminal as well as that of a coward. Martinez resumed: 

"We are that company, and that caballero," pointing to Carrel, 
" is our chief; give the message to him." 

Mateo did so, and posted himself again at the head of his band, 
who formed a single line in front of Carrel, whose companions rode 
also up, without command, into one line opposite, while Hector 
took his place by Carrel's side, who at length read with a loud 
voice : 

"Companions — Pay one thousand piastres to Don Mateo, a noble 
and estimable Mexican, captain of five hundred Camanches, whose 
captive I am here at Don Valerio's habitation. Give Don Mateo 
also thirty-six mules, for the life and liberty of Adam. 

"Saturday evening, January 27. 

"No copy." 

Scarcely had Carrel said the last two words, when he tore at 
once the paper in two, atAl at the same instant Mateo fell dead from 
Yonka's pony, his forehead being hit by two balls, not one inch 
from each other, fired b)' Hector. The six marauding fellows ot 
Mateo were simultaneously shot with him. as none of thern had 
time to think of shooting or fighting offensively and defensive!}'. 
The six mules and the two ponies, frightened by the reports of so 
many rifles, and without riders, ran away in fall gallop towards the 
fort. 

"We cannot follow the animals," said Carrel, with a feigned satig- 
froid, " but we must hurry on towards Valerio's habitation to res- 
cue our brothers and sisters there. Let us hide in this bush the 
arms of these dead robbers, whom we were forced, in self-preser- 
vation, to shoot into eternity.' 

Seven guns and six tomahawks, with Mateo's sword, were con- 
cealed in the hoUovv stump of an old tree, after doing which and 
recharging their rifles, the cavalcade continued trotting on westward, 
taking along some powder horns, partly filled with powder, as tro- 
phies, from the dead marauders. 

They came near Valerio's habitation, where they rested half an 
hour, to feed their mules and to refresh themselves with what they 
had of victuals. When the Phalangarians had been, with their 
animals a little strengthened by rest, and food, they mounted upon 
them again, and Carrel said with a firm and loud voice : 



( 57 ) 

"Brothers and friends, now let us fight like heroes — as worthy 
Phalangarians let us fight, and if it must be, let us die fighting for our 
captive brothers and sisters, and for ourselves, as it is sure that these 
marauding savages will attack us in our fort, whence they expect 
Mateo to return with our money and our animals. Let none of us be 
frightened by the dreadful war-whoop ; the reports of our rifies shall 
duly answer it. Let not one single shot he fired without etTect, for 
^ve have not one to spare. Let us keep and fight closely together 
like a real Phalanx. Our watchword is: 'California — Phalanx!'" 

" Let each of us now fire two successive shots until they answer, 
according to Adam's plan. I will begin, then you will continue, 
Hector, and so on, every one re-charging as fast as possible." 

So it was done, and Hector had scarcely fired when they answered 
twice on the other side, where every thing had been prepared for a 
vigorous sally. 

"Thank Heaven," cried Adam, "our fiiends are coming ! Mateo 
and his fellows are killed. Now let us fight I Qnel two! That's 
right! One! two! again! Let us answer." 

Adam and Sylvio fired their rifles in double and quick succession, 
and immediately re-charged them, whereupon they cried as loud as 
they ceuld, "California!" and anxiously listened for the answer, 
"Phalanx!" that sounded through the rattling of numerous rifle- 
shots, accompanied by the yells of the war-whoop, which the furious 
Camanches hellowed, wielding their tomahawks and firing their guns 
at random, in the hope thus either to scare their assailants or to has- 
ten Mateo's return, whom they supposed to be fighting with the lat- 
ter. 

Leaving Valerio's habitation surrounded by the eighteen men under 
the direction of Munoz and Valerio, Yonka remaining within by Te- 
resa and Alejico, as their last protectors in a case of utmost misfor- 
tune, — Adam, Sylvio and Waanataa advanced with undauntable cou- 
rage towards their corning friends, at every moment attacked by hosts 
of Camanches, who fell, one after the other, by the never-missing 
balls of the Phalangarians, while they moved slowly hut constantly 
forward, on either side, or rather towards each other, until they 
j/med their 'California' and 'Phalanx' with mutual 'Hurrah,' re- 
I)eated m joyful excitement of triumph and victory. The twenty-two 
Phalangarians would ;iow hold a short council about what should be 
(lone in pursuit of their victory, but they were interrupted by the re- 
ports of many guns, fired in the direction of Valerio's habitation, 
where they supposed a new attack to be made by the still numerous 
Camanches, in consequence of which they hurried thither as fast as 
possible. 

In the mean time Valerio's habitation was the theatre of horrible 
bloodshed. A large body of Camanches had made a desperate charge 
upon its defenders, posted around it. Seven of the latter fell dead, 
and four were severely wounded, besides Munoz, who fought like a 
hero, until a shot broke his right arm, whereupon he still fired his four 
pistols with his left hand, killing or wounding an enemy by every shot. 

Valerio had posted himself before the door, behind which his hero- 



( 58 ) 

ical Teresa re-charged several guns and pistols, exchanging them with 
him for those he had fired ; while Yonka vied with him, always shooting 
the foremost of the assailing Camanches. 

More than one hundred Camanches were killed, and it was evident 
that as many still remained, shooting and roaming about. They had 
undoubtedly either been more than one hundred in number when Ma- 
teo commanded them, or increased since his arrival at Valerio's habi- 
tation; furthermore, it was probable, that a band of marauding Ca- 
manches had gone in search of Mateo with his companions, and found 
their corpses on the way to the fort, whither they were also driven by 
hope of plunder or by vengeance, in consequence of which those in 
the fort must be in a very dangerous situation. It became, therefore, 
a most urgent necessity, to finish as soon as possible the struggle with 
the Camanches about Valerio's, and then to return in a body to the 
fort, which was to be preserved by all means as the last and only re- 
treat of the company 

When Carrel, with his eighteen mounted companions, and the three 
others on foot, arrived at Valerio's, forty or fifty Camanches made a 
new and most vigorous charge on them, to prevent their union, which 
however was soon completed, although unhappily not without a con- 
siderable loss on the part of the Phalangarians, of whom the. follow- 
ing were more or less severely wounded: Downing, Johns, Clarke, 
Donaldson, Tivocati, Maxle, Roger, Pally and Waanataa ; but in re- 
venge they killed seventeen, and wounded about a score of Camanches, 
the remainder of whom w'ere driven out of sight in less than one 
hour. 

However, notwithstanding this decided victory, the situation of all 
was dreadful in the extreme, on account of the wounded, who could 
neither have their wounds well dressed for want of lint, nor be well 
tended and made comfortable, particularly because the weather had 
suddenly turned very cold, and snow fell in large quantity on the eve- 
ning of the battle day, and provisions for men and animals were ra- 
ther scanty, while it was impossible to reach the fort before two or 
three days, even if all had been able to start for it on the next day. 
There were now in all thirty-eight persons living at Valerio's habita- 
tion : twenty-two men and Yonka of the Phalanx ; Valerio, Teresa 
and Alejico; Munoz and eleven of his men remaining. Among these 
thirty-eight persons seventeen were wounded and more or less unable 
to walk, through the deep snow, a distance of fifty miles to the fort. 

On Tuesday, the 30th of January, the company started from \a- 
lerio's habitation, seventeen mules being mounted by the wounded 
men, whose condition allowed only a slow motion, made so already by 
the natural impediment of a deep snow, which fell steadily for the last 
thirty-six hours, so that the difficulties of the company on the journey 
to the fort were numerous and great. 

Among the wounded, those born in Southern countries suffered the 
most from the cold. 

Several of our companions in misfortune gave way already to de- 
spair, willing to throw themselves into the snow and die. Carrel, 
however, proved now that he deserved to be the chief of the com- 



( 59 ) 

pany. Out-roaring the storm, he commanded with all the power of 
his voice, " Halt I " and continued : 

"My friends, let us never lose our trust in God. He is the master 
of the elements and our fate. He will not forsake us if we do not 
give ourselves up to despair. Washington, the greatest hero of liber- 
ty, and his heroical band, had once more and worse hardships to over- 
come ; 2000 men without sufficient food and clothing, bare-headed 
and bare-footed, they marched through ice and snov/, leaving bloody 
footsteps on their way to immortal victory and liberty. Let their 
glorious example refresh our trust in God! " 

During the night the weather grew a little milder, and since the 
violent " pouderie " which caused the company to stop, it had ceased 
snowing and storming. 

With sun-rise they rose from their rather uncomfortable couch, the 
lower part of which was immediately eaten up by the hungry mules, 
while the half-starved travellers consumed the last remnants of their 
cold rice, to keep up their fainting strength for the day, on which 
they must either reach the fort, or lay down again upon the frozen 
ground, without any thing to eat, most probably to rise no more, as 
then they must die with cold, and for want of food. What a horrible 
prospect ! 

The sun had shone brightly for the whole day and was already set- 
ting, while the exhausted Phalangarians began to tell each other their 
doubts, whether they and their animals had sufficient strength remain- 
ing to reach the fort, when they were suddenly and joyfully startled 
by the report of a rifle in the east. 

Carrel, Adam and Hector fired their rifles as fast as possible, where- 
upon a deadly silence prevailed for a few minutes among the company, 
when their anxiety was relieved by three double-shots in quick suc- 
cession and of equal loudness, which proved that they were fired near 
each other. 

Scarcely had ' California ' been answered with ' Phalanx,' when 
Gaston and Arland arrived, galloping on their mules. A joyful con- 
fusion prevailed for some minutes — questions and answers could scarcely 
be discerned, when Carrel told the new-comers in a few words th« 
last events; whereupon Gaston acquainted the company with what 
follows : 

Ned reached the fort with Matador, and the other animals in due 
time, followed on the next day by the six mules and two ponies, which 
had been taken by Mateo and the other six marauders at Valerio s 
habitation. Some straggling Camanches had soon made their appear- 
ance around the fort, but finding it well guarded, they durst not at- 
tack it, and were probably driven away by the falling snow and in- 
creasing cold. 

Not a quarter of an hour had elapsed, when the company were 
cheered by the arrival of Ned, with mules and ponies. Asa careful 
hostler, Ned brought a quantity of water-plants, which he had just 
finished packing upon his animals for transporting to the fort. Mata- 
dor, the faithful messenger, was caressed by all who owed then- rescue 
lo his useful services. Night was setting in, when the whole party 



J' 



( 60 ) 

mounted upon the fresh animals, and rather late in the evening on the 
31st of January, 1850, the over-fatigued adventurers arrived at the 
Phalanx fort, where they enjoyed a hearty supper, consisting of hot 
rice-cakes and beef-steaks of red-deer, &c. 

The whole succeeding day was spent in conversation, eating and 
drinking, in order to restore the sufferers to their former strength. 

The regulations of the company, as they had been estabhshed at 
the commencement of their residence in the fort, were kept in force 
until Sth of February, when Carrel, Hector, and Clark, fearing star- 
vation from the little provision in the fort, and the little prospect oi 
being able to add to it by killing game or otherwise on the route to 
California, resolved upon returning to the States; and accordingly, af- 
ter taking an affectionate leave of the inmates of the fort, left on their 
tireary journey back to St. Louis, Mo., where they arrived, after un- 
dergoing many privations and hardships, on the 1st of March, 1850. 
Previous to their departure from the fort, the more persevering Pha- 
langarians had re-organized and determined to pursue their journey, 
as soon as the concUtion of the disabled members would permit. 
Adam promised to continue his journal up to about two vreeks after 
their arrival in California, should they be so fortunate as to ever 
reach that country, — when he was to forward it to the United States 
by express, and which, should this meet with remunerating favour, 
will be published soon. 



THE END. 



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OCT 6 193 










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